Garden Tool

Denver Botanic Gardens - Mordecai Children's Garden

Children's Garden:
Who Lives Here?

Let's learn about the plants that make their homes in different parts of Colorado! Begin at the top of the Mordecai Children's Garden near the entrance. Each part of the garden represents a different Colorado ecosystem, with alpine tundra at the top, grasslands near the bottom and many others in between. Look for signs along the path to learn more about each one and the plants that live there.

Alpine Tundra

Plants on the tundra grow low to the ground to stay out of the wind. Find the lowest growing plant.

Wooly hairs protect plants from the cold, the same way a sweater keeps you warm. Find a plant that feels fuzzy or hairy.

Some plants use a waxy coating as a watertight seal to keep from drying out. Find a plant that feels waxy or smooth.


Harsh winds in the subalpine ecosystem can cause trees to become twisted and crooked. Find a twisted tree. It might look dead!

Plants in the subalpine zone can grow between rocks to stay protected from the wind. Find plants growing in between rocks.

Montane Forest

Find a pine tree. It has needles that are bundled together.

Find a spruce tree. It has needles that are square and sharp.

Find a fir tree. It has needles that are flat and soft.


Find blue grama grass. It has seeds that look like eyelashes.

Find a yucca plant. It has leaves that look like long spikes coming from its base.

Find a cactus. They usually have sharp spines, so do not touch them.


Find an aspen tree. It has white bark with dark spots that look like eyes. Can you hear the leaves shake and quake in the wind?

Find a leaf that is in the shape of a diamond.

Find little animals on the forest floor looking for dead leaves to munch on. You might see rolly pollies, worms or snails.

Piñon/Juniper Woodlands

Find a leaf that has three points.

Find a sage plant. It has fuzzy, silvery leaves. What does it smell like if you gently rub a leaf between your fingers?

Use Sagebrush Stage and pretend to be a plant! What kind of plant will you pretend to be and where will you live?