This revised Front Range Tree Recommendation List was developed through the collaborative efforts of 16 individuals each representing a different aspect of Colorado’s Green Industry. Green Industry organizations represented included American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA); Colorado Nursery and Greenhouse Association (CNGA); municipal arborists representing the Colorado Tree Coalition and International Society of Arboriculture, Colorado State University (CSU) Extension, Denver Botanic Gardens (DBG), Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS) and Colorado Arborists and Lawn Care Professionals (CALCP). Based on the committee’s collective education, knowledge and experience over 211 trees or varieties were evaluated and rated, resulting in a single reference list for professionals to use and share with customers or residents.
The purpose of this project was to update and expand an original list creating a Front Range Tree list for use by Green Industry professionals based on decades of actual experience growing and caring for trees in our area. The list is intended to assist those involved in the buying, growing, selling, selection, siting and specification of trees, with the ultimate goal of a healthy, diverse and geographically appropriate landscape and urban forest. The ratings apply to the Colorado Front Range, generally defined as the region from Colorado Springs to the Wyoming border and from the foothills to the eastern plains.
The initial list of evaluated trees was based on a compilation of six 2023 Front Range Nursery Catalogs plus recommendations from committee members. The group evaluated each tree based upon five different critical factors and eight cautionary cultural factors along with three other categories. After evaluating each tree based on these critical, cautionary and other categories, each tree was placed in one of four categories or placed in a non-recommended list.
Click here access The 2024 Front Range Tree Recommendation List