Longs Gardens: Historic Iris Nursery in North Boulder

Longs Gardens: A Century of Iris on Broadway

Few places in Boulder carry more quiet history than Longs Gardens. Founded in 1905 by J.D. Long, it is a third-generation, family-owned and operated iris farm, today run by his granddaughter Catherine Long Gates and her husband. It sits at 3240 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80304, a short stretch of garden tucked along the foothills corridor that explodes into color every spring when the iris are in bloom.

Where is it? 3240 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80304 — on Broadway in North Boulder.

The Iris Collection

Longs Gardens specializes in bearded iris — tall bearded and intermediate varieties among them — and its catalog lists each variety's hybridizer and year of introduction.

The bloom season is the main event. The garden is open to the public when the iris are in bloom, late April through early June, and during those weeks it is open to visitors who want to walk the rows, pick out plants by color and form, and purchase rhizomes for their own gardens. The selection leans toward varieties the Long family has grown and trialed over generations, including favorites such as the tall bearded San Francisco.

Visiting and Community Fit

Longs Gardens operates on a seasonal schedule, opening each spring during bloom and closing once the iris finish for the year. It is not a year-round retail nursery. That makes timing essential: visiting outside the bloom window means missing the garden at its most useful and most visually striking.

For 80304 residents, the appeal is straightforward. It is a walkable or bikeable destination from much of North Boulder, and it offers something genuinely rare — a working specialty iris farm with three generations of family ownership in the same neighborhood. Parents bring children to walk the rows; gardeners come to shop for rhizomes; photographers come for the color. All three groups find what they came for.

Practical Information

• Address: 3240 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80304
• Hours: Seasonal — open to the public when the iris are in bloom, late April through early June; check the website for current-year dates before visiting
• Website: longsgardens.com

If you live in 80304 and have never walked the rows at Longs Gardens during bloom, put it on the calendar for this spring. A garden that has been tended by the same family since 1905 earns at least one visit.