Enjoy Your Outdoor Living Area More with These Drought Resistant Plants
Many people mistakenly believe that Florida is moist year-round with excessive rain and humidity. Most of the state’s rainfall occurs from May to October and the rest of the year is dry. With no rain or irrigation, many plants enter a state of drought stress and might not live. You can water the plants using a hose but then your water bill drives your monthly expenses up. One of the best ways to enjoy your outdoor living area is by planting drought resistant plants.
Best Drought Resistant Plants for a Florida Landscape
Below are a few of the best drought-resistant plants for your outdoor living space. Each one adds beauty of the landscape year-round.
- Blanket Flower: Technically, the Blanket Flower is known as the Gaillardia pulchella. It is a Florida native that is widely available at greenhouses and nurseries throughout the state. The plant is highly drought-resistant and can also withstand salt, so it is great to plant near the ocean. The annual grows great in full sun and is easy to manage.
- Beautyberry: The Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) grows to an impressive height of five to nine feet. It produces a bevy of lavender flowers. Following flowering, eye-catching purple blossoms appear in clusters during the late summer and fall months. The drought-tolerant shrub requires extraordinarily little care to thrive. If it does become too large, you can trim it back to a more manageable size. Plant the shrub in full sun in a well-drained site for best results.
- Firebush: The Firebush (Hamelia patens) is a shrub that requires truly little care to thrive. You will love the fact the tube-shaped orange and yellow flowers attract swarms of butterflies and hummingbirds. The Firebush is native to the Tampa Bay area.
- Saw Palmetto: The Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) grows well throughout Florida. It can thrive in even exceptionally dry conditions. Many people who live seaside opt to plant this shrub because of its ability to withstand salt. The palm attains a height of four to 12 feet tall. It produces fan-shaped leaves that measure up to two feet across. The shrub gets its name from the sharp, saw-tooth spines on the petiole. One thing that stands out about this plant is its bluish-green coloration.
- Buttonwood: The Buttonwood (Conocarpus erectus) is a Florida plant that tolerates drought well. Many locals use the plant to create a hedge. The dense silver foliage offers a unique visual interest.
- Longleaf Pine: The Longleaf Pine, known as the yellow pine, grows to a height of 80 to 100 feet and has a very dense crown that sports impressive needles that are exceptionally long which only adds to the tree’s grace. The tree grows well in full sun and likes well-drained soil. Wildlife loves this tree so if you want to attract songbirds to your garden then you will not be disappointed if you plant the Longleaf Pine.
- Seagrapes: Seagrapes (Coccoloba uvifera) is a shrub that grows well in coastal regions. It can easily attain a height of 35 feet. The shrub can tolerate an occasional frost without suffering damage. It grows well in shade or partial sun. During the late spring and early summer, it produces long racemes of white, fragrant flowers.
- Spiderwort: The Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana) reaches a height of one to two feet. The Florida native produces large clumps of blue flowers. It produces abundant blossoms throughout spring. Plant in sun or shade. You can cut the flowers back during the spring to encourage it to continue making blooms into the hot summer months.
- Bluestem Palmetto: The lovely bluish hue of the Bluestem Palmetto (Sabal minor) is very tropical in appearance. It grows well even in poor soil. It can tolerate wet conditions or dry areas.
If you are thinking of planting drought-tolerant Florida plants then why not consider building one of our Central Florida pergolas to support vines or flowers? Please contact us to learn more.