DROUGHT TOLERANT COLOR
Is your garden looking a bit dull? High temperatures have taken a toll on just about everyone’s garden. But no one needs to finish out the summer with drab outdoor surroundings. There’s a wonderful group of plants that provide late summer color (and into fall) that are not only beautiful but drought tolerant too. Keep in mind when planting any perennials, trees or shrubs at this time of year, no matter how drought tolerant they may be, you’ll need to provide regular watering to get them established. After they have rooted in, you can gradually cut back on watering. Please note: supplies and selection will vary at each McDonald location.
CALIBRACHOA (Annual) – formerly known as million bells, calibrachoa is an easy to grow, sun-loving, low maintenance plant that displays masses of bell-shaped, petunia-like blooms from spring until the first light frost. The blooms cover long, cascading branches that make the plant ideal for containers or hanging baskets.
COREOPSIS (Perennial) – if you haven’t planted coreopsis recently, you’re in for a treat. Breeders have been busy, and now there are new colors and color combinations. Look for red as well as orange varieties. Then scout out the new patterns and color combinations of traditional yellow, orange and red.
DAYLILIES (Perennial) – practically indestructible, daylilies will flower their heads off in almost any sunny spot. They are drought and insect resistant and offer a wide range of colors and bicolors depending on the variety.
LANTANA (Annual) – a colorful favorite in so many options, Lantana comes in lavenders, pinks, yellow and oranges. With a spreading growth habit, these sun-lovers thrive in window boxes, container gardens and in landscape beds.
MANDEVILLA (Annual) – because it blooms so profusely, mandevilla is an excellent plant for adding color to sunny decks, patios, balconies, and other outdoor spaces. It also looks beautiful on a trellis, fence, or mailbox! Find it in pink, white and red! Plus, it’s drought toleran, so it makes a great vacation-home plant that requires less watering.
SALVIA (Perennial) – salvia produces wonderful clusters of violet-blue flowers from midsummer to early fall. These flowers are loved by butterflies and hummingbirds and are great cut flowers.
SEDUM (Perennial) – famous for their ability to put up with just about anything, sedums (stonecrop) are the perfect solution for dry or rocky areas. Resistant to drought, heat, humidity, and poor soil, sedums store moisture in their thick, succulent, green, golden, purple, or red leaves, resulting in long-lasting color and a strong tolerance for almost any weather conditions.
SUCCULENTS (Annuals) – resilient and handsome, these drought-tolerant gems are perfect for container gardens. No matter where you live, succulents can bring a bit of the desert to your backyard. Sun-loving, drought tolerant and attractive, these adaptable plants have taken up residence in troughs, pots and other vessels anywhere in your outdoor spaces.
