Demonstration Garden

Chaffee Fairgrounds Demonstration Garden

Colorado State University Master Gardener volunteers plant and maintain this garden in partnership with the Chaffee County Fairgrounds team to showcase plants that do well in our short season, dry climate and as a space to host classes on gardening, seed saving, composting and more.

Chaffee Fairgrounds Demonstration Garden
10165 County Road 120
Salida, CO

Chaffee County Master Gardeners

A demonstration garden with winding gravel pathways bordered by mulched planting beds containing shrubs, small trees, and drought‑tolerant plants.

2026 plant list

  • Perennial shrubs: Shrubby cinquefoil (potentilla fruticosa), currants (Ribes rubrum), serviceberries (Amelanchier spp.), catmint (Nepeta mussinii), Russian sage (Salvia yangii), rose (Rosa spp.)
  • Perennial flowers: Iris (Iris spp.), Blanketflower (gaillardia grandiflora), Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
  • Annual vegetables: CO05037-2R/Y potatoes from the Colorado State University Experiment station in Center, Colorado (Solanum tuberosum) You can order in the spring at potatoes.colostate.edu
  • Annual flowers: Cosmos (Cosmos spp.), marigold (Tagetes spp.), Fireworks zinnia (Zinnia elegans), African daisies (Osteospermum spp.)
  • Trees: Colorado blue spruce (Picea pungens), cottonwood (Populus fremontii), Japanese crabapple (Malus floribunda)
  • Container garden with deer protection by Extension Office: Tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum), marigold (Tagetes spp.), Colorado River beans (Phaeseolus vulgaris) from Salida Seed Library, pepper (Capsicum annuum).
  • Reseeded grassy space by Extension office: Brady’s Western native mix (slender wheat grass, Snake River wheat grass, thickspike wheatgrass, blue grama, western wheat grass, Indian ricegrass), Asclepias tuberosa, Gaillardia, Fabulous fireworks flower mix from Botanical Interests

We are grateful to the Colorado Garden Foundation for their generous support of the Chaffee County Fairgrounds Demonstration Garden.

Looking to volunteer?

Looking to get your hands dirty and volunteer? If you want to get involved or learn more directly from the experts, you can drop by their weekly volunteer and educational sessions every Tuesday from 9:00 – 11:00 a.m., from June 9 – September 1, 2026.