Sunday, September 27, 2015

Facing the Climate Change Reality - New, Mostly Drought Tolerant Plant Purchases

With temperatures having been consistently over 90 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius) again this weekend and similar temperatures being forecasted for the whole upcoming week, I wonder if Southern California is hit by yet another heatwave or if this is the new normal. It almost doesn't matter if the first or the latter is true, gardeners are forced to look for more drought and heat tolerant plants whether they like it or not, in case they still want to have a garden in the future.

So I bow to nature and try to find new drought and heat tolerant plants for my garden that I can love. I have to admit there are many drought tolerant plants that I don't like. But in the last weeks I was making a serious attempt to find drought tolerant plants that still go well with my idea of a dream garden. And as always when you truly search, you are very likely to find something.

I recorded another Periscope broadcast today where I show my new drought tolerant plant purchases. Are you curious what plants I got? Here they are: Verbena bonariensis, Stachys monieri 'Hummelo', Liriope muscari 'Super Blue', Bearded Irises 'Best Bet', 'Rio Vista' and 'Clarance'. Please, take a look at the video to see them in person.




Thanks for watching the video! Would you like to share what drought tolerant plants work well for you in your garden? If so, please leave a comment. It can never hurt to get more ideas...

See you in the garden!

Christina

9 comments:

  1. Interesting! Yes, I think growing drought tolerant plants is really interesting, that's a need, especially when we in tropics facing long dry season like as this moment. happy gardening, Christina.

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  2. Dear Christina ,I have learned all grey leaved plants like dry positions. Plants with leatherly leafes also. Don't forget the herbs. Beautiful for instance thyme. Lots of succes! Groetjes, Hetty

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  3. All good choices, Christina, although I have no personal experience with that Stachys. Some people think drought tolerant equals succulents but there are lots of other choices. If you haven't already done so, you might to want to look at some of the beautiful options among the Australian and South African plants. As you may know from reading my blog, I've fallen head over heels for Grevilleas, many of which have gorgeous flowers, as well as Leucodendron, both of which are probably good choices for your area. There are also some wonderful Leptospermum available now. In the bulb category, Watsonia and Sparaxis, as well as Freesia, are good choices.

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    1. Kris, thanks for your detailed reply! I am always taking notes when I see a plant on your lovely blog that I like, since you are far more advanced in choosing drought tolerant plants for your garden than I am at this point. I will also research the plants that you specifically mentioned in your comment above. I saw Watsonia and Freesia bulbs at my last visit at the nursery, but didn't get some, maybe I will reconsider.
      Christina

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  4. Drought-tolerant plants seem to be a good choice for most of us these days, but especially for you folks in California. Love the Verbena! My favorite plants are the ones that thrive in moist as well as drought conditions--especially the ones that repel rabbits! That's not asking too much, is it? ;-)

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  5. Thank you, Christina for sharing your research with us. I am looking for drought tolerant plants, too, as even here in 'rainy' Seattle we are suffering a drought. The garden is always evolving and it gives us new excuses to buy new plants! Right now I am very happy with my sedum and tansy, as they have survived this very dry year. I will write down your selections in my gardening journal. Wishing you a happy week in the garden! xo Karen

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  6. Verbena b. is a super tough plant that the pollinators will love. I've never heard of 'Hummelo' being drought tolerant. I have mine in my rain garden! But it does like to be fairly well drained so it's in a spot that gets very moist but the water drains to the subsoil within a few days. Liriope has little bladders attached to the roots so it will survive whatever your drought throws at it. :o)

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  7. Hi Christina, your choice of draught tolerant plants is interesting, my experience with daylilies is that they need a lot of water, but I have mostly grown them in containers. Over here we have the same issue of long spells of drought, but plants also need to be able to cope with longer periods of rain when we get that, so it’s not easy :-)
    Have a good Sunday!

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