Garden Bloggers Fling springs into Niwot

Last week, horticulturists from around the world gathered in Denver for the 12th annual Garden Bloggers Fling, a yearly meet-up of gardening bloggers, who spend three days exploring the host city’s horticultural hot-spots. On Saturday, the tour headed northwest to Boulder County, where nearly 100 gardening enthusiasts got a chance to tour some of the local area’s backyard paradises.

Among the stops was the Niwot home of Scott and Paula Deemer, located near the Mountain View fire station.

“It was so much fun,” Scott Deemer said after the event. “It was a nice group of nice people who know a lot about gardening, and who had lots of questions about my yard.”

The Fling also made stops at the homes of local residents Judy Seaborn, and Mary and Larry Scripter. Seaborn, co-owner of seed company Botanical Interests, helped to organize the group’s swing through the Mile High City. There were also stops in Loveland, Fort Collins, and Denver.

Scott Deemer, who is president and founder of landscape design firm Outdoor Craftsmen, said he created his award-winning landscape with sustainability in mind.

“We’re very deliberate about hydrozoning and microclimates as it relates to sun, shade, and slope, that are really important when selecting the right elements so that they can be hardiest in those separate conditions.”

Deemer termed his aesthetic “mountain modern,” and said that he used locally-sourced natural elements in his design, including boulders from the Loveland area and Colorado flagstone from Masonville. He also used more than 1,500 plant species, all of which were repurposed from previously discarded plantings.

“Most of our plant choices are very drought-tolerant species that aren’t necessarily indigenous to Colorado, but thrive here. So they’re specially selected for their hardiness in our environment.”

It also makes for “a bloom sequence that’s just awesome,” Deemer said.

“It starts in February and goes all the way until late fall. So every week, there’s something new happening in the garden. We’re very deliberate about the structure plants, so they look awesome even in the winter months when they’re void of leaf.”  

Deemer is looking forward to tackling his next design challenge, which he won’t have to venture very far for. He and Paula recently bought the vacant property next door and plan to break ground on their new dream home in the coming months.

“It’s going to be a very modern home and a very clean aesthetic,” he said. “Again, it’s going to be the main structure plants that are going to set it off. I’ve already started collecting those plants, and they’re being hidden away in my inventory over at Outdoor Craftsmen.”

He is also looking forward to the 15th anniversary of Outdoor Craftsmen, coming up on September 28th. To celebrate, the Deemers will be hosting an open house for all Niwotians to show their appreciation for the community and their ongoing support of the business.