Best drought resistant plants/flowers/shrubs

[dick27]

Have you found anything blooming in this drought? Maybe that you didn't expect? Or just a helpful list for 2027 and beyond...
For me

1. salix /flamingo willow - positively busting out all over
2. poppies, popping up all over

Thereendeth my very short list. Nothing else is blooming at all.

Lavender, doing remarkably well this year, as are our plum trees, that did nothing much st all last year.

I have an olive tree planted in the ground - it is doing very well. However, any container olives I've seen are suffering.
Nothing else in my garden or allotment is happy this year.

My climbing red rose is doing well. I realised yesterday I haven't watered it at all.
Abelia is doing surprisingly well.
Not much else apart from some Dahlias that I am watering because I foolishly moved them in May.

Ah yes, my newer lavenders are doing OK. I have 2 old ones that may have seen their last summer. And I just spied some nasturtiums that are also doing OK. But this summer is tough on everything.

Watching with interest. We were due to plant our garden (we’re in London) this spring but have held off due to the desert like conditions and hose pipe ban. Am now totally rethinking what we will plant now.
Thanks for the thread.

I have lots of succulents.

Apart from lavender,
Linaria purupurea.
Bupleurum.
Autumn hawkbit is regarded as a weed but does very well: scorzoneroides autumnalis and I’ve noticed that some commercial seed sellers include this in seed mixes for farmers.
Achillea of course.
And the usual grasses as per Beth Chatto.
I noticed white lychnis coronaria on mown open grassland near me, blooming happily.
My purple sage is bleached white and I think it makes be dead.
Irises should survive.
Cotton lavender, santolina is holding on, just.
Buddleia is everywhere.
Sedums are still upright.
Ballotta is holding on
I’m very disappointed that the siderites that I bought from Beth Chatto seems to have died
Viburnum bonariensis seems to be everywhere

Our Salix is loving it , as are my roses , the oleanders and the pampas grass.

Salvias can be drought tolerant. Beth Chatto's Plants & Gardens website has a shop where you can 'shop by condition' & 'plants for dry areas' contains lots of examples of drought tolerant plants

My variegated euonymus, salvia, oregano and lavender have remained happy.
Not much else has.. even the thyme is looking sad.

My roses are doing quite well but I am watering them loads.

My cosmos plants are doing very well, also Marjoram
Rosemary
Sage
Grapevine
raspberries
gazania
Alchemilla mollis (Lady’s mantle)
Blackcurrants (they’re sweet enough to eat from the bush)
Parsley
Spirea
Curry plant
loosestrife
azalea

I haven’t really watered much except my apple and pear trees, blueberry shrubs and annual veg plants (cucumbers/courgettes/lettuce) while they got established. Manchester had a bit more rain and less heat than the south but it’s still a crispy summer here. This is my front garden today. It’s not big but it’s got plenty going on.

Gaura is doing well, any plants with grey foliage, and geraniums. Verbena is also ok.

I forgot Verbena bonariensis. I think it's the cockroach of garden plants and would still be left standing after the apocalypse.
Also forgot my raspberries though they're finished now. I had the biggest ever crop.
My Gaura is struggling.

Ooh thrilled to hear that Verbena bonariensis is a survivor. I've just been gifted some. Had to google a lot of HopppityBun's post. And found at least one thing I'd been pulling up as a weed, so thanks for that. I am thinking of buying more grasses.

Perlagoniums, roses, sunflowers (if watered) and verbena. Also all trees!

Stachys Byzantina - lambs ears, self seeding just everywhere and they look great.
Perovskia bushes, along with the roses all repeat flowering.
The combined colours, grey, blue and pink (all unplanned) are looking good.
The dropping petals are confetti quality in their colours.

My hosta has flowered.

'The dropping petals are confetti quality in their colours."
Glorious. I want this.

Rudbeckia
Sanguisorba
Silvia cherry lips
Antirrhinum (they seem to be perennials now!)
Solanum crispum

...all flowering nicely. Everything else is a bit poorly.

Definitely lavender 🪻. It gets ignored but still flowers non stop. Also heather's and phlox. Everything else has gone sigh

Salvia hot lips going great guns, also a container rose. Regretting the planting of a Pink Annabelle hydrangea…..

Roses.i have about 50 roses in my garden and i think ive watered them once all summer. They are thriving and some are repeat flowering. Also begonia. I had been watering them a bit but they don’t mind getting a bit dry. Just planted some more

I have an established single shrub rose currently on its 3rd flush. Looks great.

Roses are doing well in my garden aswell as Salvia Gregii, alyssum, erigeron and antirrhinum. I would be really grateful if anyone thinks any of their drought tolerant plants would be happy in this place. Many others are unhappy. I think I've lost most saxifrage and veronicum. They're on a very sunny bank on clay soil, poor things.

I would be very grateful if you would take a look at this thread and see if any of your drought tolerant plants might be happy in this situation.
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