25 drought tolerant plants that do not care about a heatwave (or three).

BONUS PLANTING DESIGN 101 LESSON!

It’s been a long brutal summer and the ultimate test for the plants in our gardens to show which can handle the heat, and which need to…..erm…get out of the kitchen.

I’ve been keeping a careful eye on the plants that appear to be thriving despite very challenging conditions both in my own garden and in clients and more widely in the public realm, and I’ve pulled together a selection that you can add or swap in to your (hopefully newly edited) planting list from our most recent lesson (here) ready for us to plot out your exact plants on your plan and plant them come late September/October when the weather officially cools. I’ve also included a list of whats in my studio garden which frankly - gives absolutely no f*cks about the heat and is doing just fine.

And a little note of encouragement in case you are feeling disheartened right now, looking at a crispy lawn and dead plants. Don’t give up. I know it’s gutting. Rain is on the way by the looks of the forecast - remember heatwaves don’t last forever. A friend mentioned to me that she was going to give up on the garden for the year and revisit next spring. Please don’t do this dear ones. Autumn is just round the corner and it’s a wonderful time to plan your garden (I wrote about this here).

As a reminder, we aren’t planting a damn thing now. No no no, it can be the most drought tolerant plant out there, but they are only drought tolerant once established (aka when they have been in the ground a few years and their roots have stretched out). Right now the ground is dry as a bone and neither the plants nor your water bill will thank you and besides, most of you have hosepipe bans so that just means dead plants and wasted money.

But before we get to our plant list, what actually makes a plant drought tolerant? Well there are a few tell tale signs:

1. Look for silver leaved plants. Silver or grey-green foliage is a great clues that points towards a plant handling dry conditions. You know how you shouldn’t wear black in sun as it makes you hotter, but white reflects so you feel cooler? Same principle but with plants. Pale leaves reflect more of the sun’s radiation, reducing the amount of heat absorbed by the leaf. Clever no? Examples of this would be Perovskia & Artemisia

2. Look for fluffy leaves. Fluffy plant leaves are covered in tiny hairs which reflect light and reduce air movement on the surface of the leaf, which reduces transpiration (water loss). Examples of this would be Phlomis italica

3. Look for tiny leaves. The smaller the leaf, the less surface area for transpiration and water loss.Think about the big green leaves of a Hydrangea Annabelle - which is currently probably very miserable and floppy if not irrigated. Meanwhile your rosemary with its teeny thin leaves? Fine.

4. Look for waxy or succulent leaves: A classic example of this would be sedum/hylotelephium with its chubby, succulent leaves which store water for drier times. The camel of the plant world.

5. Gimme those deep roots. Ok you cant spot these per se, but plants that root deeply or have extensive root sytems (as opposed to shallow rooted plants) also do well. Fennel is a great example of this.

   

   

So without further ado - here’s all the plants you can add to your shopping list that will take these droughts on the chin (once established that is) and within this - many of the plants you will find in my studio. Oh, and a tree that is doing brilliantly in these conditions too: