Quick answer: 56 native Colorado plants have a recorded bloom range that includes July.
56 species
- Apache plume Fallugia paradoxa · 8 states
- Arrowleaf balsamroot Balsamorhiza sagittata · 12 states
- Aspen fleabane Erigeron speciosus · 7 states
- Banana yucca Yucca baccata · 8 states
- Black-eyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta · 44 states
- Blackfoot daisy Melampodium leucanthum · 6 states
- Blue grama Bouteloua gracilis · 19 states
- Bluebunch wheatgrass Pseudoroegneria spicata · 16 states
- Buffalograss Bouteloua dactyloides · 19 states
- Butterflyweed Asclepias tuberosa · 40 states
- Cardinal flower Lobelia cardinalis · 41 states
- Chocolate flower Berlandiera lyrata · 6 states
- Chokecherry Prunus virginiana · 44 states
- Colorado blue columbine Aquilegia coerulea · 9 states
- Colorado four o'clock Mirabilis multiflora · 7 states
- Common gaillardia (blanketflower) Gaillardia aristata · 11 states
- Common sneezeweed Helenium autumnale · 40 states
- Common sunflower Helianthus annuus · 18 states
- Common yarrow Achillea millefolium · 47 states
- Creeping Oregon grape Mahonia repens · 15 states
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · 43 states
- Fireweed Chamerion angustifolium · 37 states
- Giant red paintbrush Castilleja miniata · 13 states
- Harebell Campanula rotundifolia · 35 states
- Highbush cranberry Viburnum opulus var. americanum · 22 states
- Hooker's evening primrose Oenothera elata · 14 states
- Idaho fescue Festuca idahoensis · 12 states
- Indian blanket Gaillardia pulchella · 17 states
- Lewis flax (blue flax) Linum lewisii · 17 states
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · 42 states
- Littleflower penstemon Penstemon procerus · 11 states
- Mexican hat Ratibida columnifera · 17 states
- Mule's ears Wyethia amplexicaulis · 8 states
- Munro's globemallow Sphaeralcea munroana · 9 states
- Nettleleaf giant hyssop Agastache urticifolia · 9 states
- Oceanspray Holodiscus discolor · 9 states
- Pearly everlasting Anaphalis margaritacea · 38 states
- Purple prairie clover Dalea purpurea · 18 states
- Rocky Mountain bee plant Peritoma serrulata · 26 states
- Rocky Mountain zinnia Zinnia grandiflora · 6 states
- Scarlet bugler Penstemon barbatus · 2 states
- Scarlet globemallow Sphaeralcea coccinea · 12 states
- Seep monkeyflower Erythranthe guttata · 15 states
- Showy milkweed Asclepias speciosa · 17 states
- Shrubby cinquefoil Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda · 23 states
- Sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula · 38 states
- Smooth sumac Rhus glabra · 42 states
- Snowbrush ceanothus Ceanothus velutinus · 10 states
- Spotted beebalm Monarda punctata · 29 states
- Sulphur-flower buckwheat Eriogonum umbellatum · 10 states
- Swamp milkweed Asclepias incarnata · 37 states
- Tufted evening primrose Oenothera caespitosa · 15 states
- Upland larkspur Delphinium nuttallianum · 13 states
- Western yarrow Achillea millefolium var. occidentalis · 18 states
- Woolly paperflower Psilostrophe tagetina · 7 states
- Wyoming Indian paintbrush Castilleja linariifolia · 9 states
July in a Colorado native garden
July is one of Colorado's busiest bloom months, with 56 of the state's 100 native plants flowering (the peak is June).
5 start blooming in July, including Blue grama, Common gaillardia (blanketflower) and Common sneezeweed. 11 finish in July, including Arrowleaf balsamroot, Banana yucca and Bluebunch wheatgrass, so this is the last chance to see them in flower.
50 of them grow in full or partial sun and 11 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Arrowleaf balsamroot and Aspen fleabane to trees such as Chokecherry and Highbush cranberry. For wildlife, 46 support pollinators, 27 provide food or cover for birds and 13 are caterpillar host plants.
36 of the 56 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Apache plume, Black-eyed Susan, Common yarrow: common listings for these are often a bred variety or a different species.
Good places to start
Verified wild-species listings that take sun and are widely native, so they are forgiving first plants.
- Chokecherry Prunus virginiana · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Apr-Jul
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Jul-Oct
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Jun-Dec