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Native plants · Colorado

Native plants of San Juan County

201 plant species are recorded as native to Colorado in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in San Juan County by USDA PLANTS. 135 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness. 1 more species is listed as both native and introduced and kept in a separate section.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

San Juan County, Colorado

Native species
201 Typical Colorado county: 237 (median of 63 counties)
Garden-ready natives
135 Typical Colorado county: 148
Share by type (all 201 native species)
Percent of the 201 native species in each growth type
Tree 10% (20)
Shrub 10% (21)
Wildflower (forb) 49% (99)
Grass or grass-like 25% (50)
Vine <1% (2)
Fern 4% (9)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (49%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (25%).

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 135

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

Garden-ready native plants of San Juan 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
American red raspberry Rubus idaeus Shrub 6 ft Shade-tolerant — Zone 1a
American vetch Vicia americana Vine 1.3 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
arctic bluegrass Poa arctica Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun — Zone 1a
arctic pearlwort Sagina saginoides Wildflower (forb) 4 in Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
arrowleaf ragwort Senecio triangularis Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
Bigelow's tansyaster Machaeranthera bigelovii Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun Low Zone 10b
blue spruce Picea pungens Tree 100 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
blue wildrye Elymus glaucus Grass or grass-like 3.3 ft Shade-tolerant Low Zone 3b
bluejoint Calamagrostis canadensis Grass or grass-like 4.9 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
bluntseed sweetroot Osmorhiza depauperata Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
boreal sagebrush Artemisia arctica Shrub 1.5 ft — — Zone 1a
broadleaf arnica Arnica latifolia Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
buckbean Menyanthes trifoliata Wildflower (forb) 10 in Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
chestnut rush Juncus castaneus Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
Colorado blue columbine Aquilegia coerulea Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
Colorado rush Juncus confusus Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
Columbian monkshood Aconitum columbianum Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
common cowparsnip Heracleum maximum Wildflower (forb) 8 ft Sun High Zone 3b
common juniper Juniperus communis Tree 10 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
common selfheal Prunella vulgaris Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
coon's tail Ceratophyllum demersum Wildflower (forb) — Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
creeping barberry Mahonia repens Shrub 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 5a
cutleaf daisy Erigeron compositus Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
diamondleaf willow Salix planifolia Tree 8 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
Drummond's rockcress Arabis drummondii Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
Drummond's rush Juncus drummondii Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
Drummond's willow Salix drummondiana Shrub 12 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
dwarf bilberry Vaccinium cespitosum Shrub 1 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4a
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
Eschscholtz's buttercup Ranunculus eschscholtzii Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
field horsetail Equisetum arvense Fern 11 in Sun–part shade High Zone 3a
fineleaf pondweed Stuckenia filiformis Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
fireweed Chamerion angustifolium Wildflower (forb) 5.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
flat-top pussytoes Antennaria corymbosa Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 5b
fringed brome Bromus ciliatus Grass or grass-like 4 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 7a
fringed grass of Parnassus Parnassia fimbriata Wildflower (forb) 1.2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
Gambel oak Quercus gambelii Tree 40 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
Geyer's sedge Carex geyeri Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4b
glaucous bluegrass Poa glauca Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun — Zone 3a
golden sedge Carex aurea Grass or grass-like 1.2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
gooseberry currant Ribes montigenum Shrub 1 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 7a
gray alder Alnus incana Tree 25 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
hair-like sedge Carex capillaris Grass or grass-like 1.7 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3a
hairy arnica Arnica mollis Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
hairy false goldenaster Heterotheca villosa Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Low Zone 4a
heartleaf arnica Arnica cordifolia Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4b
heartleaf bittercress Cardamine cordifolia Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4b
high northern buttercup Ranunculus hyperboreus Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun — Zone 1a
hooded lady's tresses Spiranthes romanzoffiana Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
Hooker's evening primrose Oenothera elata Wildflower (forb) 5 ft Sun High Zone 5a
Indian ricegrass Achnatherum hymenoides Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
kinnikinnick Arctostaphylos uva-ursi Shrub 6 in Sun–part shade Low Zone 4a
lanceleaf grapefern Botrychium lanceolatum Fern 11 in Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
largeleaf avens Geum macrophyllum Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4a
Lewis flax Linum lewisii Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
limber pine Pinus flexilis Tree 66 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
little green sedge Carex viridula Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun High Zone 3b
longstalk starwort Stellaria longipes Wildflower (forb) 11 in Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
marsh bluegrass Poa leptocoma Grass or grass-like 2 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4b
Mertens' rush Juncus mertensianus Grass or grass-like 11 in Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
mountain brome Bromus marginatus Grass or grass-like 4 ft Sun High Zone 4b
mud sedge Carex limosa Grass or grass-like 1.8 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
narrowleaf cottonwood Populus angustifolia Tree 60 ft Sun High Zone 4b
Nebraska sedge Carex nebrascensis Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun High Zone 3b
northern singlespike sedge Carex scirpoidea Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 3b
Northwest Territory sedge Carex utriculata Grass or grass-like 3.5 ft Sun High Zone 3a
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
pale agoseris Agoseris glauca Shrub 1 ft Sun Medium Zone 4a
park willow Salix monticola Tree 12 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
pine dropseed Blepharoneuron tricholepis Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 5a
plantainleaf buttercup Ranunculus alismifolius Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
prairie Junegrass Koeleria macrantha Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3b
prairie sagewort Artemisia frigida Shrub 2 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3a
prickly currant Ribes lacustre Shrub 3 ft Shade-tolerant — Zone 1a
purple avens Geum rivale Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun High Zone 4a
quaking aspen Populus tremuloides Tree 65 ft Sun High Zone 1a
red elderberry Sambucus racemosa Tree 18 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
redosier dogwood Cornus sericea Tree 12 ft Sun High Zone 3b
Richardson's geranium Geranium richardsonii Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
Rocky Mountain goldenrod Solidago multiradiata Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun — Zone 1a
Rocky Mountain iris Iris missouriensis Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
Rocky Mountain juniper Juniperus scopulorum Tree 50 ft Sun Low Zone 3b
Rocky Mountain maple Acer glabrum Tree 30 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3a
Ross' avens Geum rossii Wildflower (forb) 5 in Sun–part shade Low Zone 10a
rough bentgrass Agrostis scabra Grass or grass-like 2.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
russet buffaloberry Shepherdia canadensis Shrub 6 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 1a
Sandberg bluegrass Poa secunda Grass or grass-like 1.4 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 3b
sanddune wallflower Erysimum capitatum Wildflower (forb) 2.5 ft Sun Medium Zone 4b
Saskatoon serviceberry Amelanchier alnifolia Tree 15 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 1a
scarlet gilia Ipomopsis aggregata Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun Low Zone 5b
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
shrubby cinquefoil Dasiphora fruticosa Shrub 2.5 ft Sun–part shade Low Zone 4b
silvery sedge Carex canescens Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4a
singleleaf ash Fraxinus anomala Tree 20 ft Sun Medium Zone 5a
slender wheatgrass Elymus trachycaulus Grass or grass-like 3 ft Sun Medium Zone 3b
small white violet Viola macloskeyi Wildflower (forb) 6 in Shade-tolerant High Zone 4b
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
smooth blue aster Symphyotrichum laeve Wildflower (forb) 4 ft Sun Medium Zone 3a
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
spiked woodrush Luzula spicata Grass or grass-like 1.3 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4a
squirreltail Elymus elymoides Grass or grass-like 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
stiff clubmoss Lycopodium annotinum Fern 1 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 3a
subalpine fir Abies lasiocarpa Tree 90 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 2a
tall cottongrass Eriophorum angustifolium Grass or grass-like 2 ft Sun High Zone 3a
tall fringed bluebells Mertensia ciliata Wildflower (forb) 2 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 5a
thimbleberry Rubus parviflorus Shrub 4 ft Sun–part shade High Zone 4b
threepetal bedstraw Galium trifidum Vine 10 in Sun–part shade High Zone 3b
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
umbrella starwort Stellaria umbellata Wildflower (forb) 1 ft Shade-tolerant High Zone 4b
variableleaf pondweed Potamogeton gramineus Wildflower (forb) — Sun High Zone 3b
water knotweed Polygonum amphibium Wildflower (forb) 1 in Sun High Zone 5a
water sedge Carex aquatilis Grass or grass-like 2.9 ft Sun High Zone 3b
western pearly everlasting Anaphalis margaritacea Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
Whipple's penstemon Penstemon whippleanus Wildflower (forb) 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 4a
white fir Abies concolor Tree 120 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3b
whitestem gooseberry Ribes inerme Shrub 8 ft Shade-tolerant Medium Zone 4b
Woods' rose Rosa woodsii Shrub 3 ft Sun–part shade Medium Zone 3a
woolly groundsel Packera cana Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 3a
yellow owl's-clover Orthocarpus luteus Wildflower (forb) 1.5 ft Sun Low Zone 12b

Other native species recorded here 66

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
  • American dragonhead Dracocephalum parviflorum
  • American rockbrake Cryptogramma acrostichoides
  • autumn dwarf gentian Gentianella amarella
  • beautiful cinquefoil Potentilla pulcherrima
  • beautiful sandwort Minuartia rubella
  • Bebb willow Salix bebbiana
  • bluntleaf yellowcress Rorippa curvipes
  • boreal bog sedge Carex magellanica
  • brightgreen spleenwort Asplenium trichomanes-ramosum
  • brittle bladderfern Cystopteris fragilis
  • Douglas' knotweed Polygonum douglasii
  • Drummond's campion Silene drummondii
  • dryspike sedge Carex siccata
  • elkweed Frasera speciosa
  • fairy slipper Calypso bulbosa
  • false melic Schizachne purpurascens
  • feathery false lily of the valley Maianthemum racemosum
  • fragile rockbrake Cryptogramma stelleri
  • Fremont's goosefoot Chenopodium fremontii
  • giant red Indian paintbrush Castilleja miniata
  • greenflowered wintergreen Pyrola chlorantha
  • heartleaf twayblade Listera cordata
  • Hornemann's willowherb Epilobium hornemannii
  • lesser spikemoss Selaginella densa
  • liverleaf wintergreen Pyrola asarifolia
  • longbract frog orchid Dactylorhiza viridis
  • Mingan moonwort Botrychium minganense
  • moss campion Silene acaulis
  • mountain deathcamas Zigadenus elegans
  • mountain tansymustard Descurainia incana
  • northern bog violet Viola nephrophylla
  • northern sweetgrass Hierochloe hirta
  • 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
  • shortray fleabane Erigeron lonchophyllus
  • sidebells wintergreen Orthilia secunda
  • single delight Moneses uniflora
  • small-leaf pussytoes Antennaria parvifolia
  • snowline wintergreen Pyrola minor
  • spearleaf stonecrop Sedum lanceolatum
  • spreading fleabane Erigeron divergens
  • spreading sandwort Arenaria lanuginosa
  • starry false lily of the valley Maianthemum stellatum
  • summer coralroot Corallorhiza maculata
  • tarragon Artemisia dracunculus
  • tasselflower brickellbush Brickellia grandiflora
  • tiny trumpet Collomia linearis
  • tobacco root Valeriana edulis
  • trailing fleabane Erigeron flagellaris
  • twinflower Linnaea borealis
  • veiny meadow-rue Thalictrum venulosum
  • Virginia strawberry Fragaria virginiana
  • wavyleaf thistle Cirsium undulatum
  • western rattlesnake plantain Goodyera oblongifolia
  • wood bluegrass Poa nemoralis
  • woolly cinquefoil Potentilla hippiana
Also listed as native and introduced here 1

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.

  • claspleaf twistedstalkStreptopus amplexifolius

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, San Juan County and Colorado
MeasureSan Juan CountyTypical countyStatewide
Native species 201 237 1,119
Garden-ready natives 135 148 585
Tree 20 — 66
Shrub 21 — 92
Wildflower (forb) 99 — 626
Grass or grass-like 50 — 278
Vine 2 — 20
Fern 9 — 37

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with San Juan 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
San Juan County (county FIPS 08111), Colorado. 201 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

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