`Flowering cacti and more in the garden of Steve Aegerter

A rainbow of flowering prickly pear cactus wowed me in the waterwise garden of Steve Aegerter on Denver’s Open Days tour.… Read More

The post Flowering cacti and more in the garden of Steve Aegerter appeared first on Digging.

August 05, 2026

Continuing with the gardens on the Denver Open Days Tour in June, let’s visit the garden of Steve Aegerter, owner of Garden Guy Designs. Even before I stepped out of my car, I was wowed by a rainbow of flowering prickly pear cactus.

Orange may have been my favorite.

Ka-pow!

Pollinators were digging it too.

Yellow tinged with rose and carnation pink are also lovely.

And how about this magenta one? Worth a few spines in your gardening gloves to have flowers like that, right? No extra water needed.

Speaking of spines, Steve has a majestic ‘Snow Leopard’ cholla in a rocky raised bed, which glowed like a torch in the afternoon light. Next to it, a fuzzy mullein adds greenish white flower spikes.

‘Snow Leopard’ cholla, globe thistle, and a small grass make a wonderful, dry-garden combo.

But back to those prickly pears…

They pair well with creeping sedum.

Red yucca was flowering beautifully, reminding me of my former Texas home.

A lemon-yellow prickly pear is backed by another variety with spines so thick it looks furry.

Another angle

Flowering yucca — Y. pallida, maybe? Between this flower and the red yucca flower, I can tell Steve doesn’t have to worry about deer. They devoured these flowers in my old garden.

A rock garden’s small plants thrive in the reflected heat of the neighbor’s driveway

Cuties

Denver gardeners always have a hypertufa trough or three filled with winter-hardy cacti and succulents. I’ve already acquired a few troughs of my own and look forward to planting them.

Mullein

An allium’s globe-like flower cozies up with a tiny pine tree.

In back, larkspur turns the fence line purple-blue, while Steve’s watering can collection adds color higher up.

Raised beds offer space to grow vegetables and flowers.

And a shade-loving crevice garden adds beauty under a big tree.

Up next: The personal garden of Denver Botanic Garden horticulturist Mike Kintgen. For a look back at Marilyn Raff’s garden of fragrant roses and wildflowers, click here.

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The post Flowering cacti and more in the garden of Steve Aegerter appeared first on Digging.