Bryan Fischer

Bryan has had a passion for plants for as long as he can remember. Fueled by juicy-imaged garden books and weekends on a fifth-generation family ranch in the Colorado Rockies, he landed his first job as soon as he could drive, working in a dry-bean breeding program. His experience now includes both academic and applied work in horticulture with Colorado State University, Denver Botanic Gardens, and the Gardens on Spring Creek in Fort Collins, Colorado, where he currently serves as curator of plant collections. Bryan holds a B.S. in horticulture from Colorado State University, and his work for Fine Gardening draws upon his education, his intensive home gardening, observations of plants in nature, and two decades of experience gardening in the Rocky Mountain region.

  • Mountain West Regional Reports

    Growing Garlic in the Rocky Mountains

    Good things in life take time. Most of us recognize the truth in this statement, especially when it comes to our gardens. Not only are the best designs often those…

  • Mountain West Regional Reports

    Perfect Plant Combinations for the Mountain West

    There is no perfect garden plant, unless one is talking about plastic. All chlorophyll-loaded garden accents have both good and bad visual and cultural attributes. Understanding the weaknesses of your…

  • Tufted evening primrose
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    Pollinator Plants for the Mountain West

    Whether you have the space to create an expansive, pollinator-friendly landscape or just enough room to pot up a couple plants that are pollinator favorites, we can all do our…

  • Mountain West Regional Reports

    An Invasive Willowherb to Watch For

    Most of us gardeners have a good read on which plants in our gardens are problematic—which we often refer to as weeds. Typically these plants make seasonal appearances, like the…

  • Mountain West Regional Reports

    Native Shrubs That Do It All in the Mountain West

    A trend I see among many gardeners is experimenting with “new” perennials, either novel cultivars from breeders or older varieties that the plantsperson in question has never grown. Most of…

  • Mountain West Regional Reports

    Native Tree Species for the Rocky Mountain Region

    Many gardeners in the Mountain West struggle to find trees; especially attractive, well-behaved trees that excel in our harsh climate. Here, native trees must overcome frequent wildlife browsing and competition…

  • Mountain West Regional Reports

    Ground Covers for Dry Shade in the Mountain West

    One of the most challenging microclimates in Mountain West gardens also happens to be one of the most common, particularly in mature, treed landscapes—dry shade. Most plants adapted to grow…

  • native annuals
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    Native Annuals and Biennials for Rocky Mountain Gardens

    Over the last decade or so, the swelling interest in ecological gardening, particularly in the use of native rather than introduced plant species, has proven itself one of the most…