Natives by ZIP

Native plants recorded in your state and county

Native plants · Colorado

Native plants of Hinsdale County

95 plant species are recorded as native to Colorado in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Hinsdale County by USDA PLANTS. 60 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness. 2 more species are listed as both native and introduced and kept in a separate section.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Hinsdale County, Colorado

Native species
95 Typical Colorado county: 237 (median of 63 counties)
Garden-ready natives
60 Typical Colorado county: 148
Share by type (all 95 native species)
Percent of the 95 native species in each growth type
Tree 6% (6)
Shrub 4% (4)
Wildflower (forb) 53% (50)
Grass or grass-like 32% (30)
Fern 5% (5)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (53%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (32%).

Recorded native ranges can include long-established populations that spread from gardens; check your state’s native plant society list for local guidance. How native status is decided.

ZIP codes mainly in this county fall in USDA hardiness zone 5a (2023 map).

The native plant list

Cold hardiness is estimated from each plant’s PLANTS minimum temperature. How we estimate it.

Garden-ready natives 60

Native species with PLANTS growing records (height, light, moisture, minimum temperature). “—” means PLANTS has no value.

Garden-ready native plants of Hinsdale County, Colorado
PlantType HeightLight Water useHardy to
alpine bistort Polygonum viviparum Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun High Zone 3b
alpine mountainsorrel Oxyria digyna Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
alpine timothy Phleum alpinum Grass or grass-like 1.4 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
American alpine speedwell Veronica wormskjoldii Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
American bistort Polygonum bistortoides Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun High Zone 3b
arctic bluegrass Poa arctica Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun — Zone 1a
Arizona fescue Festuca arizonica Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Low Zone 5a
arrowleaf ragwort Senecio triangularis Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
bristlecone pine Pinus aristata Tree 40 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
chokecherry Prunus virginiana Tree 25 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
Colorado blue columbine Aquilegia coerulea Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
Columbian monkshood Aconitum columbianum Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
common juniper Juniperus communis Tree 10 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
common mare's-tail Hippuris vulgaris Wildflower (forb) 2.8 ft Sun High Zone 3b
cutleaf daisy Erigeron compositus Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
Drummond's rockcress Arabis drummondii Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
elephanthead lousewort Pedicularis groenlandica Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
Engelmann spruce Picea engelmannii Tree 120 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2a
fringed brome Bromus ciliatus Grass or grass-like 4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
glaucous bluegrass Poa glauca Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun — Zone 3a
gooseberry currant Ribes montigenum Shrub 1 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 7a
heartleaf bittercress Cardamine cordifolia Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4b
Idaho fescue Festuca idahoensis Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
lanceleaf grapefern Botrychium lanceolatum Fern 11 in Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
littleseed ricegrass Piptatheropsis micrantha Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
Mertens' rush Juncus mertensianus Grass or grass-like 11 in Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
mountain pepperweed Lepidium montanum Wildflower (forb) 10 in Sun–part shade Low Zone 4a
mountain sedge Carex scopulorum Grass or grass-like 1.3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
muttongrass Poa fendleriana Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
old man's whiskers Geum triflorum Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
orange agoseris Agoseris aurantiaca Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
Pacific anemone Anemone multifida Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5a
plantainleaf buttercup Ranunculus alismifolius Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
Richardson's geranium Geranium richardsonii Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
roadside agrimony Agrimonia striata Wildflower (forb) 6 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
Rocky Mountain goldenrod Solidago multiradiata Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun — Zone 1a
Rocky Mountain penstemon Penstemon strictus Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
rough bentgrass Agrostis scabra Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
Rydberg's penstemon Penstemon rydbergii Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
sanddune wallflower Erysimum capitatum Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
Scouler's willow Salix scouleriana Tree 50 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 6a
seep monkeyflower Mimulus guttatus Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
shortfruit willow Salix brachycarpa Shrub 3.6 ft — — Zone 5a
showy locoweed Oxytropis splendens Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
shrubby cinquefoil Dasiphora fruticosa Shrub 2.5 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4b
slender wheatgrass Elymus trachycaulus Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
smallflowered woodrush Luzula parviflora Grass or grass-like 2 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4a
smallwing sedge Carex microptera Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun High Zone 4a
softleaf sedge Carex disperma Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
southwestern showy sedge Carex bella Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 5b
spike trisetum Trisetum spicatum Grass or grass-like 1.9 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
subalpine fir Abies lasiocarpa Tree 90 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2a
tall fringed bluebells Mertensia ciliata Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 5a
threetooth ragwort Packera tridenticulata Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 5a
Thurber's fescue Festuca thurberi Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
timber oatgrass Danthonia intermedia Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4a
tufted hairgrass Deschampsia cespitosa Grass or grass-like 3.4 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
twinberry honeysuckle Lonicera involucrata Shrub 10 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3a
Utah sweetvetch Hedysarum boreale Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
Whipple's penstemon Penstemon whippleanus Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a

Other native species recorded here 35

PLANTS has no growing records for these, so light, moisture, height and zone filters cannot include them. Many are wild species seldom sold by nurseries.

  • alpine bluegrass Poa alpina
  • alpine fescue Festuca brachyphylla
  • alpine lewisia Lewisia pygmaea
  • alpine milkvetch Astragalus alpinus
  • aridland goosefoot Chenopodium desiccatum
  • autumn dwarf gentian Gentianella amarella
  • ballhead ipomopsis Ipomopsis congesta
  • beautiful cinquefoil Potentilla pulcherrima
  • brittle bladderfern Cystopteris fragilis
  • Carruth's sagewort Artemisia carruthii
  • Douglas' knotweed Polygonum douglasii
  • fewflower spikerush Eleocharis quinqueflora
  • lesser spikemoss Selaginella densa
  • little grapefern Botrychium simplex
  • manyflower stickseed Hackelia floribunda
  • Menzies' campion Silene menziesii
  • Mingan moonwort Botrychium minganense
  • moss campion Silene acaulis
  • mountain deathcamas Zigadenus elegans
  • mountain tansymustard Descurainia incana
  • northern bentgrass Agrostis mertensii
  • Norway sedge Carex norvegica
  • pimpernel willowherb Epilobium anagallidifolium
  • Porter brome Bromus porteri
  • purple reedgrass Calamagrostis purpurascens
  • pygmyflower rockjasmine Androsace septentrionalis
  • red baneberry Actaea rubra
  • Rocky Mountain fescue Festuca saximontana
  • rosy pussytoes Antennaria rosea
  • spearleaf stonecrop Sedum lanceolatum
  • tobacco root Valeriana edulis
  • Virginia strawberry Fragaria virginiana
  • witchgrass Panicum capillare
  • wood bluegrass Poa nemoralis
  • woolly cinquefoil Potentilla hippiana
Also listed as native and introduced here 2

PLANTS labels these species both native and introduced in this state: some forms are native and others were brought in from elsewhere. Most gardeners should choose plants from the main list.

Compared with Colorado

The typical county is the median of the 63 Colorado counties with PLANTS county records; the statewide figure counts every species native anywhere in the state. More species is not better or worse: counties differ in size, habitat and how thoroughly they have been surveyed.

Native species counts, Hinsdale County and Colorado
MeasureHinsdale CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 95 237 1,119
Garden-ready natives 60 148 585
Tree 6 — 66
Shrub 4 — 92
Wildflower (forb) 50 — 626
Grass or grass-like 30 — 278
Vine 0 — 20
Fern 5 — 37

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Hinsdale County.

Look up another ZIP

Matches your ZIP to the county it mostly lies in, then lists the plants recorded as native to your state (Kew’s World Checklist and USDA PLANTS) and recorded in that county by USDA PLANTS.

Source & data date

Source
USDA NRCS PLANTS Database: county distribution records, native status and plant characteristics. CC0 (public domain dedication, per the data.gov catalog record).
Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP): native or introduced status by state. CC BY 3.0.
USGS US-RIIS (ver. 2.0): species listed as introduced are excluded. CC0.
Citation
USDA, NRCS. 2026. The PLANTS Database (https://plants.usda.gov, 11/04/2026). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC USA.
Govaerts R. (ed.) (2026). WCVP: World Checklist of Vascular Plants. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Data file dated 2026-06-04, http://sftp.kew.org/pub/data-repositories/WCVP/ (retrieved 2026-11-04). Paper: Govaerts R. et al. (2021) The World Checklist of Vascular Plants, a continuously updated resource for exploring global plant diversity. Scientific Data 8, 215.
Data date
Retrieved from PLANTS on November 4, 2026; WCVP data file dated June 4, 2026.
Zones
USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023) ZIP table: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed November 3, 2026. Plant zones on this site are our estimate, not the official map.
Scope
Hinsdale County (county FIPS 08053), Colorado. 95 native species from PLANTS county distribution records; garden-ready = species with a PLANTS characteristics record.
Method
A species is listed when it is recorded as native to the state in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in the county by USDA PLANTS. Species PLANTS labels both native and introduced are listed separately. Full method · All sources

Independent reference site. No government affiliation or endorsement.