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An oil and gas drilling/fracking operation and the front range of the Rocky Mountains, silhouetted by the sunset - East of Denver, Colorado (File Photo) July 25, 2025 | NORTHERN COLORADO’S WEEKLY LOCAL INDEPENDENT | Vol. 33, N. 15 SEE THE STORY: PAGE 20 EXPLORE OUR LATEST PROMOTION TODAY! HIKING • FISHING • CAMPING • CLOTHING & FOOTWEAR • KITCHEN • GIFTS • FARM & RANCH • HARDWARE • GARDEN FAMILY OWNED SINCE 1955 | LAFAYETTE | BROOMFIELD | LOVELAND | FORT COLLINS | JAXGOODS.com SCAN HEREJuly 25, 2025 week of BRILLIANT IN BLOOM A vibrant purple iris in full bloom stands tall against a wooden fence in Timnath. (Photo by Randy Black, Timnath)© 2025 North Forty News New SCENE Weekly All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, incluiding photocopying or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the editor, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by the copyright law. For permission requests, write to the editor, addressed “Permissions”, at the address below. info@northfortynews.com NorthFortyNews.com The views expresses in this publication are those of the respective contributor and are not necessarily shared by the company or its staff.Each week, I step away from the deadlines, the inboxes, and the behind-the-scenes logistics to remind myself why we do this work. Then I walk a Northern Colorado trail, camera in hand. Sometimes it’s a quiet bloom of yarrow on a rocky slope. Sometimes, it’s a fresh poke bowl shared with family after a busy day. These moments become the heartbeat of the stories we tell at North Forty News. In this edition, we bring you stories rooted in both resilience and joy. We take you into the kitchen for another Publisher’s Plate, where I test out Passanante’s Creamy Mushroom and Asparagus Chicken Penne—easy, comforting, and surprisingly gourmet. We dig into the details of Weld County’s growing oil and gas partnerships, spotlight community safety with Larimer County’s scam alert, and celebrate local culture with a powerful theatrical tribute to Matthew Shepard. And we never forget the little things that connect us— your local farmers' markets, art walks, concerts, and even the mystery of why your car may or may not need a front license plate in Colorado. Through every feature, we aim to do more than inform. We connect. We empower. And we bring you the people, places, and progress that make our region exceptional. Whether you’re reading us over morning coffee, scrolling through your phone at lunch, or exploring a new weekend event—we’re here for it. And we’re here for you. Thanks for being part of this journey. You can always read the latest edition of North Forty News at the following link, bookmark it! northfortynews.com/this-week See you out there, Blaine Howerton Publisher, North Forty News PUBLISHER’S LETTER BY BLAINE HOWERTON Your support helps us provide coverage of Northern Colorado communities. Support North Forty News in the following ways: • Advertise - ads@northfortynews.com • Donate - northfortynews.com/donate-now • READ - northfortynews.com/this-week Inside Northern Colorado: Fresh Flavors, Local Stories, and Community Connections This WeekA quiet moment with nature's healer — Common Yarrow blooming on the edge of a Colorado mountain trail (Photo by Blaine Howerton)Content Fort Collins Fort Collins, at the foothills of the Rockies, is Northern Colorado’s vibrant heart. Known for its historic Old Town, craft beer scene, and outdoor recreation, it blends urban energy with small-town charm. Home to Colorado State University, it’s a hub for innovation, culture, and community. TIKTOK AS A BUSINESS PLATFORM 10-11 HONOLULU POKE BAR BRINGS A TASTE OF HAWAII TO FORT COLLINS 12-13 FORT COLLINS TO HOST POWERFUL PLAY HONORING MATTHEW SHEPARD’S LEGACY 14 WEST NILE VIRUS RISK PROMPTS FIRST LARIMER COUNTY CASE AND MOSQUITO SPRAYING IN FORT COLLINS 23 EVERYTHING COLORADO DRIVERS SHOULD KNOW ABOUT FRONT LICENSE PLATES 25 We Love your Photos! Send yours to photos@northfortynews.com. We will share them.Content Northern Colorado Weekend Forecast Scattered Showers Friday, Blazing Sun Saturday–Sunday Friday brings a 30% chance of late-day thundershowers, with highs near 90 °F and evening lows around 56–59 °F. Saturday warms further, mostly sunny skies and a high near 94 °F, with mild overnight temperatures. Sunday delivers the hottest weather of the week—sunny and hot, with highs in the 96–97 °F range and lows around 62 °F. Light afternoon breezes offer little relief. Outdoor plans are best scheduled early or late in the day, with hydration and shade strongly advised. Greeley Greeley, a dynamic city in Northern Colorado, is rich in agricultural heritage and cultural diversity. WELD COUNTY EXPANDS OIL AND GAS SUPPORT IN NORTHERN COLORADO 20 Loveland Loveland blends creativity with small-town charm. It’s the Northern Colorado hub for Larimer County’s events.. CREAMY COMFORT, DELIVERED: A WEEKNIGHT WIN WITH PASSANANTE’S CHICKEN PENNE 17 LOVELAND WARD 3 COUNCIL SEAT OPENS FOLLOWING RESIGNATION 24 NOCO Northern Colorado blends small-town charm with urban convenience, offering mountain views, outdoor recreation, and a strong community spirit. WHY “UGLY” PLANTS DESERVE A SPOT IN YOUR COLORADO GARDEN 8-9 LARIMER COUNTY WARNS RESIDENTS OF SUMMER SURGE IN SCAMS 21NorthFortyNews.com Page: 8July 25, 2025 EDITORIAL: Bryan Fischer | The Gardens on Spring Creek CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE. WHY “UGLY” PLANTS DESERVE A SPOT IN YOUR COLORADO GARDEN These days, “waterwise”, “native,” and “low-maintenance” have become more expectations than preferences for many nursery shoppers. It’s understandable; we are inundated day-in and day-out with news of an ongoing climate crisis, the decline of pollinators and other wildlife, and the uncertainty of water supplies. And, while the average nursery shopper enjoys working in their garden, they don’t want to do so more than a couple of hours a week, saving their time for the bevy of other demands in their daily lives. At the same time, shopper preferences — paradoxically — have pushed us away from a broader and more regionally-tuned plant palette. This sounds counterintuitive, since most shoppers want to do the right thing and shop with good intent to beautify their yards while doing right by nature. But the truth is, many of the plants that do the most good (or the least bad, depending on your stance) aren’t plants that look good in the nursery. Often, they look downright bad in a pot: scraggly, leggy, or waifish, with yellowing or absent lower leaves and few or no blooms. Beside them sit lush, billowing, leafy perennial specimens, many of which sport impressive floral displays. Of course, it’s tempting to buy the plant that looks best. After all, isn’t that an indication the plant is healthy and primed to succeed in your garden? Many of the traits that make our native and regionally- adapted plants so durable, resilient, and beautiful in our gardens make them horribly adapted to culture in a pot. Having evolved on our mineral-dominated soils of little organic matter, many natives despise the organic-based, water-retentive nursery potting mix they are typically grown in. In a pot, this can be seen as yellowing or dropping lower leaves, as well as stunted growth due to reduced air exchange or excessive moisture in the Pink Hyssop, Hyssopus officinali (Photo from Shutterstock.com)NorthFortyNews.comPage: 9July 18, 2025 Six stunning sculptures. One inspiring journey through nature, friendship, and healing. Peace Walking is organized by Denver Botanic Gardens. may 2 - aug . 17 2025 The Gardens on Spring Creek | 2145 Centre Ave, Fort Collins, CO | 970.416.2486 | fcgov.com/gardens root zone. After all, many natives have adapted to receiving precipitation only periodically (sometimes as little as once a month), while nursery pots — even those with native plants — typically need watering almost daily due to their restricted volume. In addition to the soil texture and composition preferences of our natives being at a mismatch with nursery potting mix blends, the actual size and shape of nursery pots pose issues as well. A large percentage of our natives invest a large percentage of their energy in massive root systems, especially plunging roots and tap roots that seek moisture and nutrition deep in the soil profile. They do this before putting on any substantial above-ground growth; just last year I potted up a few plants, including sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) and mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) seedlings that had less than two-inches of above ground growth but sported plunging roots that extended two to three feet long when washed. Obviously, these roots do good work for the plant, but can’t be seen when shopping and aren’t able to do their jobs properly when constrained to even a larger nursery pot, which may only be eight inches deep. One other major factor that I have almost never heard mentioned on this topic is the fact that many exotic plants — especially hardy, garden staples — have been grown in cultivation for generations. During that time, they were repeatedly selected for their looks, not just their dispositions. In many cases, this included being selected and bred for their appearance in a pot. This isn’t true for most of our natives. Even our most rigorously bred natives of the Rockies, High Plains, and Southwest have only been worked on for the last 20 to 40 years — for example, hyssops (Agastache species), native grasses like blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis), and even the extensively hybridized coral bells (genus Heuchera). Western hyssops, for example, were brand-new to the market as recently as the 1990s and have enjoyed an explosion of new cultivars in the last 15 years, many of the more recent introductions of which are stellar potted plants. In essence, don’t write a plant off because it doesn’t look “good” on the nursery bench. And, take the time to look between the beautiful red valerian (Centranthus ruber), catmints (Nepeta x), and golden yarrow (Achillea filipendulina) for native gems and other regionally-adapted plants which may not be suited to life on a shelf. Given a chance in your garden, most will bounce back in a month or two and impress the next season and beyond with reduced water and fertilizer needs, increased utility to local critters, and a unique aesthetic element not immediately discernible on the nursery bench. And, since shopper preference drives nursery offerings, it could help to increase the spread of superb native plants offered by your local growers. You’ll find that giving those ugly plants a chance will also make your garden more interesting, increasing the diversity of plants in the space and the timing of bud break, foliar growth, bloom, and senescence, all without adding more work for you, the gardener. So, don’t assume a plant isn’t the right fit for your garden just because it doesn’t present well at the nursery; give that ugly plant a chance!Next >