As the summer heat continues its hold over our area, you may notice some of your spring plantings beginning to wilt, droop, and look sad. Unfortunately, many plants cannot handle the intense heat of our summers. Fortunately, there are many plants that not only tolerate but love the hot weather. Below are eight different plants that you can find right now at your local Meadows Farms nursery.
Flowering Vinca
Flowering vinca is one of the premier flowering bedding plants for sunny, hot areas. Vinca is drought-tolerant and can thrive in any soil provided that it is well-draining. Vince is also a low-maintenance plant, so they are perfect for the gardener who does not have a lot of time to spend in the garden. Vince comes in many shades of pinks, mauves, and whites and blooms abundantly throughout the summer.
Lantana
Lantana is a showy, drought-tolerant woody annual with clusters of beautiful flowers that come in mixed shades of yellow, orange, red, pink, and purple. They work well in borders or mass plantings, and their trailing habit makes them prime candidates for hanging baskets or your favorite patio container. Lantana loves the heat, so plant them in well-draining soil and keep them watered regularly during the hottest days.
Lavender
If the soothing fragrance isn’t enough to convince you of the value of lavender in the landscape, perhaps its ease of maintenance will. Hardy perennial lavender is easy to grow and thrives in high heat conditions provided you plant it in well-draining soil. Because of the scent, lavender is also quite pest-resistant, and its blooms are a perfect attraction for pollinators like honey bees and butterflies.
Tropical Hibiscus & Mandevilla
Transform your patio into an oasis of color by adding pots of blooming tropical annuals like Hibiscus or Mandevilla vines. Fill a few ceramic pots with several of these blooming beauties and your patio will become an outdoor living room. These tropicals love the hot sun, but make sure they get ample water to keep them looking their best. We carry each in an array of colors which will provide an incredible show from now until the cold nights of October.
Ornamental Grasses
Ornamental grasses are available in a wide array of colors, shapes, textures, and sizes. The flowers and subsequent seed heads are equally diverse, ranging from “ho-hum” to genuinely spectacular. Most ornamental grasses thrive in the hot, full sun. Many varieties are quite drought-tolerant, though a few can handle wet areas as well. Their adaptability and subtle beauty make them perfect companions to flowering plants and other woody ornamentals.
Coneflowers
Coneflowers are a native perennial to North America and have been a staple plant dating as far back as the Native Americans. However, it wasn’t until recently that coneflowers have been making a resurgence in home gardens. Once only pale pink, coneflowers are now available in a multitude of different varieties that provide a summer season’s worth of color year after year. They are also great plants to attract pollinators. Bees, butterflies, and birds love hanging around the large blooms.
Elephant Ears
Native to the warm and humid climate of tropical Southeast Asia, elephant ears are a showstopper in the garden. Varieties of elephant ears can reach anywhere from 6 to 10 feet in height, with massive sized leaves that give them their name. While Elephant Ears enjoy the hot and humid weather from our summers, they don’t enjoy direct sunlight. A shaded area or one that contains filtered sunlight is an ideal place to plant them.
SunPatiens
Have you ever wanted the elegant beauty of flowering impatiens or New Guinea impatiens, but the sun in your garden makes it impossible? SunPatiens are for you! SunPatiens have the same look of classic New Guinea impatiens but are grown with stronger foliage and thicker bloom petals to withstand high heat, sun, and disease. They make a great addition to any summer flower bed.
Find the Perfect Heat-Loving Plants at Meadows Farms
Don’t let the summer heat take a toll on your garden! Stop by your local Meadows Farms nursery today to explore our selection of vibrant, heat-tolerant plants. Whether you’re looking for stunning flowers, hardy perennials, or bold tropicals, we have everything you need to keep your landscape thriving all season long. Visit us now and bring home the best plants for summer success!
great information – both flowering vinca and sunpatients have been outstanding in the sun. They are strong and vigorous. New Guinea impatients are so much weaker. THANKS
I also love sunpatiens.. but this year they were attacked by pests/fungus and they are very water intensive. You can’t miss a day or they wilt!
I love lavender, but have not had much luck with it. I have tried to plant it in a pot and in the flower bed, but it did not make it either. Any ideas?
I have found that it is important to harvest/prune lavender while harvesting. This makes the plant more vigorous. With a lavender scythe, grab a bunch of flowers/stems in one hand while cutting the stems about one inch below the new growth with the scythe
A sunny location and sparse watering are preferable. Bonus: The deer won’t eat lavender!
Like your articles and helpful info –
I have planted vincas here in the mid-Atlantic (6B) and more south, in USDA hardiness zone 7B. They are great in hot, dry flowerbeds. My experience has been that you should not plant them before May because, if you do, the cold weather stunts their later growth and they don’t flower out as fully.
I would also add nasturtiums to the list of plants that like it hot, noting that in this location, my nasturtiums have always attracted bugs once they are mature and their stems are starting to get leggy.
My favorite annuals are petunias, but they are all dying from the heat. Growing up in the 60s we never had this problem. I’m going to replace all the petunias with vinca. Hope you’ve got lots of them!
Mike watch this – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1bX6W4bI8w
ill never plant the lobelias in hanging baskets
I have been disappointed for 3 years w/my hydrangea bushes, no flowers but lots of beautiful leaves. When should I prune them?
Thank you for responding. My bill from 10/30/14 , no. 14107223 says I have (2) Endless Summer and (2) Penny Mac. Right now I have 1 blue flower and all leaves. When do I cut them and how far down should I cut?
Thanks again, I hope this works. I’ve been disappointed ever since I bought them. I did no trimming for the past 2 years hoping something would happen but nothing did. I will prune them this week.
I’m looking for a native ornamental grass for full sun. What do you recommend?
I planted a lavender plant last year I believe it’s called Phenomenal, it’s doing well but it’s starting to look a little droppy and sloppy. Should I prune it back and if so what is a good time to do this?
My hydrangeas suffered from heat scorch last summer so I cut them back all the way to the ground. Uh oh. I think I made a huge mistake as they are not blooming at all this summer however they are green and lush! What should I do? Should I prune them or just leave them alone?
All of my Knockout Roses (25 bushes) have developed Rosette Disease. I started picking off each “new rosette growth” but with so many plants, I have not been able to keep up with this. I’m not sure if it was doing any good since the new growth was back in a day or two. I’ve heard that the only “cure” for Rosette Disease is to dig up all the bushes and destroy them. I’ve also read that you should not plant new roses where the ones diseased ones grew. I hate to dig up all my once beautiful rose bushes. I thought of cutting them all back to about 10″ but wasn’t sure if this would help. What should I do?? Also, what types of roses are resistant to Rosette Disease?
I have two different wisteria- amethyst falls and blue moon. I’m not how or when to prune. My amethyst falls has gotten out of control now and needs major pruning.
Thank you!
Renee
I have a hydrangea that I thought was snowflake but is not bright white. It more of a cream color. Do I cut this down halfway in the fall? I’ve never trimmed in the last three years ~ just cut the dead blooms off.
What about coreopsis? I thought they were a great late summer plant (and deer resistant) but lately while some varieties have done very well, the pale yellow one with asparagus-like foliage (Moonbeam?) is just toast.
Mike –
what about creek bed plants? I need to protect my creek bank – and most of it is in shade. What can I plant to build a root system that can handle shade and occasional flooding?- thank you
I’m looking for a shrub to plant near my husband’s grave that loves arid semi arid temperatures
I planted a plum tree and a peach tree 2 years ago. No fruit or blooms has ever been produced. What is the matter?