When it comes to planning a summer garden, we're all about bright colors and evoking lushness — even in the midst of the dry Texas heat. But the tropical plants and the golf-course lawns that tend to conjure up images of sipping mojitos in a poolside hammock are (gasp!) heavy drinkers. That's why these water-savers say to stay away...
It's easy to recommend going local with your gardening, but here's another tip from National Geographic: avoid tropical varieties, annuals (which tend to have a short life span), and, you guessed it, lawns.
If these types of plants aren't suited to your local environment, then steer clear: they'll do nothing but drink you out of house and home.
Instead, opt for native, drought and heat-hardy plants and embrace your local flora and fauna. Enjoy a nice hibiscus when you're vacationing in Hawaii.
(Image: Amber Byfield for Apartment Therapy.)
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
You don't even have to go as far as Hawaii to enjoy tropical flora. New Orleans is a sub-tropical zone and is absolutely rife with enormous hibiscus, bougainvillea, birds-of-paradise, and even has wild parrots in City Park. Plus NOLA still needs help recovering from Katrina.
view Jezebella's profile
Your advice is good, but I think it depends on where you live. I decided to plant some cacti and succulents right in front of my house, but we've had so much rain lately that they aren't doing too well. They haven't died, but they also haven't grown much at all. I live right outside of Houston, and I have three hibiscus bushes that are as tall as my house. They bloom continuously throughout the year, and I never water them. We have a pretty nice front lawn, and we water it for just a few minutes once or twice a week. I've also found that a lot of plants that are labeled "annuals," like impatiens, begonia, etc. survive the winters here and comes back in the spring even bigger and prettier than the year before. "Drought tolerant" isn't necessarily the best practice for everyone, though I do think it just makes sense to plant what grows well in your native environment.
view Brandyjane's profile
Planting locally-appropriate is much more effective than broad-brushed advice like "use drought-tolerant plants, avoid annuals." In the Pacific Northwest, plants have to be able to handle a fair amount of rain as well as some summer dryness. Spring annuals around here do just fine with no added water, finishing their cycle before the dryer weather hits in July. Some parts of my yard grow moss year 'round--no drought-tolerant plants are needed there!
Also, ATnest would do well to keep spin in mind--many people still think of drought-tolerant landscaping as sere and bland, something to do because it's good for conservation rather than having any aesthetic appeal. Remind people of how gorgeous sustainable landscaping can be! (hint: a picture is worth a thousand words)
view water_bird's profile
Native plants tend to be most appropriate for any given climate. I don't water unless I have an area of newly planted perennials, the babies get water the first year as needed but after that... they go free of the hose and other fussy care. My lawn tends to brown out each August with hot dry weather but recovers by mid Sept. when the rains return. The make up of extensive perennial beds has changed over the years as some varieties die out and others self sow or spread on runners. I try to keep a nice aesthetic balance by relocating volunteer plants to more appropriate locations. Mulch keeps weeds away and maintains a more even moisture content.
view Alice's profile