Looking for drought-tolerant plants for your ornamental garden or arid landscape? Look no further because we’ve exactly the plants you want–gorgeous drought-tolerant plants you won’t believe thrive with little to no watering!
Lovely Drought-Tolerant Plants For Thirsty Gardens
Drought-tolerant plants became an obsession for me one dry summer spell when my prized roses suffered. Since we just have to make lemonade when life hands us lemons, I went and made myself some lemon meringue too. Drought-tolerant plants were the perfect solution for a low-maintenance gardener like me. If you’re particular with water conservation, then drought-tolerant plants are your new best friends. Here’s an extensive list of drought-tolerant plants you’ll fall in love with.
1. Agave
Turn heads with these interesting perennials in your front yard landscape. Wait till it flowers and you’ll have more curious onlookers–which is in some 10 to 20 years to be exact!
2. African Daisy “Gerbera”
African daisies will wither on a dry spell, so what got them into this list of drought-tolerant plants? They’re virtually hard to kill once they’re established and they don’t really wither and die. They just go dormant or go on survival mode.
3. Beardtongues Or Penstemon
Don’t be fooled by these lovely and dainty blooms. Penstemons thrive on neglect and will, therefore, feel at home in your waterless garden.
4. Black-eyed Susans
So you want a cottage flower garden in your arid landscape? Black-eyed Susans are your go-to plants for a flower garden running riot in your dehydrated garden.
5. Blazing Stars “Ajuga”
It’s amazing how these flowers can thrive on both ends of weather spectrum. From a dry spell to a bitter winter, blazing stars will thrive in your garden.
6. Bougainvillea
Spanish villas and a Mediterranean landscape are never without these lovely blooms. Bougainvillea’s gorgeous colors is a testament on how you can maintain a lovely flower garden in a dry landscape.
7. Bugleweed ‘Ajuga’
Some former growers may pass up on this drought-tolerant plant as bugleweed or carpet bugle can be invasive. But in a really parched landscape, perhaps, they can be tamed.
8. Butterfly Weed “Asclepias Tuberosa”
Invite butterflies (especially monarch butterflies), and hummingbirds to your garden with dainty butterfly weeds. You can make your garden butterfly- and bird-friendly and just as beautiful even in a dry spell or arid landscape.
9. Cactus Plants
What could be more drought-resistant than cactus, which practically thrives in a waterless environment? You’ll love even their thorns which help quench their thirst. With hundreds of variety–it will always be interesting.
10. Coneflowers “Echinacea”
Large flower heads and showy blooms are perfect backdrops for your low-lying drought-tolerant plants. Coneflowers, being a member of the daisy family, are dependable even with an inferior and dry soil.
11. Cosmos Plants
Another beautiful flowering annual plant which thrives even in neglect. In fact, growing cosmos in a fertile and watered landscape will only produce verdant foliage and fewer flowers, which isn’t exactly what you are looking for in your flower garden.
12. Daylily “Hemerocallis”
One of my favorite perennials, daylilies aren’t considered ‘the perfect perennial’ for nothing. What lovely blooms and brilliant colors for a variety that is both a drought- and frost-tolerant!
13. Desert Rose “Adenium Obesum”
One of the most familiar flowers in a desert or arid landscape is the adenium obesum which is befitting of its common name, desert rose. It may shed its foliage in a cold or dry spell but the blooms will flourish to your adoration.
14. Crown Of Thorns “Euphorbia Milii”
The thorns may intimidate you but the flowers will definitely win you over. One of the most interesting drought-tolerant plants, the crown of thorns will interest you more with the variety of colors, sizes, and forms.
15. Indian Blanket Flowers “Gaillardia”
Although blanket flowers or Sundance are best appreciated in the wild, you can grow a few in your sandy well-drained soil. With a high tolerance for drought, they do best in a hot climate in full sun.
16. Kaiser’s Crown Or Crown Imperial
Did our list just get even more interesting with this amazing entry? A bulb can cost a few dollars, but you can boost your dry landscape with this beautiful oddity.
17. Lantana Camara
Lantana is common in the tropics and is even classified as invasive, but for a naturally drought-tolerant plant, they can probably be tamed. With interesting flower form and a profusion of different colors, you can grow a cottage flower garden in a dry garden.
18. Lavender “Lavandula”
One of our favorites, lavender is simply extraordinary. Valued for more than just its looks, it is both an ornamental and essential herb. It is also a plant that can withstand both a dry spell and a frost.
19. Romneya “Matilija Poppies”
Featured in 1998’s The Mask Of Zorro, Romneyas, are indeed, native to California and northern Mexico. A white flashy flower head with an intense yellow center deserves a spot in your arid garden landscape.
20. Oleander “Nerium Oleander”
Oleander is native to the Mediterranean region to the Arabian peninsula but is also found in tropical regions around the world. Take precaution, though, this beautiful drought-resistant plant is one of the most poisonous ornamental plants.
21. Primula
Primula, as a drought-tolerant plant, is attributed to its ability to thrive in inferior soil from the rocky Himalayas to boggy meadows.
22. Purslane “Portulaca”
Some varieties of purslane are considered weeds, being virtually hard to kill and easily proliferating. Use this to your advantage and grow an Alpine meadow-like landscape even in your waterless garden.
23. Red Salvia Or Scarlet Sage
Pair scarlet sage with the equally drought-resistant purple wild sage and you’ve got a cottage flower garden-like landscape. A flower garden with an explosion of colors is possible even in a dry, sandy, and rocky landscape.
24. Stonecrops “Sedum”
If you’re looking to do a xeriscape for your dry landscape, stonecrops or ‘sedum’ would be great. It is a leaf succulent flowering plant which does well in a rocky landscape.
25. Succulent Plants
Succulents are all the rage these days with different varieties and interesting colors and forms. Besides that, its resistance to drought probably made it an endearing garden and indoor plant.
26. Sunflowers “Helianthus”
If not totally drought-tolerant, sunflowers are definitely summer flowering plants. Not only are they great for your landscape, both the seeds and the young flower heads are edible too.
27. Verbena Or Vervain
Some species of Verbena wear the colors of the stars and stripes. This makes them great for your summer garden in planters or hanging pots, not just for the Fourth of July, but for a patriotic look all summer long.
28. Vinca Or Periwinkle
You can trust these lovely blooming flowers to thrive in your garden with little care. On hot and dry summer days just sit back and relax and these flowers will flourish all on their own.
29. Whiteweed “Ageratum”
For a plant called Whiteweed, the flowers are commonly blue, which is great for your dry garden. For a flower color which can be hard to grow, ‘ageratum’ is a great choice for your arid landscape.
30. Wild Sage
Like most variety from the sage and salvia family, the wild sage sure is drought-resistant. Grow a drought-tolerant landscape with wild sage as an addition.
31. Yarrow “Achillea Millefolium”
You would do well to include yarrow in your dry garden landscape with its beneficial herb properties. It has a long been used as food, to make tea, dried as cooking herb, and was once a popular vegetable.
32. Yellow Alyssum Or Stone Herb
You have a bonus in this low-lying dry-resistant plant which thrives in rocky terrain. It has a sweet smelling scent which earned it the nickname of sweet alyssum, plus it has dainty yellow flowers in clumps.
33. Yucca
One of the mainstays in a desert to semi desert landscape is the interesting yucca. It is similar to agave, only reserved or smaller in form and has conventional flowers which bloom in shorter time than agave.
Learn how to pick drought-tolerant plants for your arid or dry landscape in this video:
There you go, homesteaders! Drought-tolerant plants perfect for your dry or arid landscape. A dry spell wouldn’t be much of a concern now with these trusty plants to choose from!
So which drought tolerant plant will you be adding on your homestead? Let us know below in the comments!
Up Next: Beat-the-Heat Summer Plants For Your Garden
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This post was originally published in April 2016 and has been updated for quality and relevancy.
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