90 tried and tested drought-tolerant plants

This is a list of some of our favourite drought-tolerant plants that have been tested either in our own gardens or are recommendations from our very knowledgeable and supportive readers.

Shrubs

Buddleia – their flowering period may be a bit truncated but they seem happy to give it a go

Callistemon – bottle brush, a bit of a marmite shrub due to its spiky foliage, but definitely a heat lover.

Caryopteris – welcome pale blue flowers at the end of the summer

Cistus – should be able to cope unless planted in the last couple of years, when you may need to chuck a bucket of water at it every couple of weeks

Colutea – bladder senna. The commonest species is Colutea arborescens which grows into a small tree but I have the smaller Colutea persica var. buhsei which copes really well with a hot dry site. Lovely yellow/orange two tone pea-like flowers (scented and bumble bee friendly) followed by bladder fruits – pretty pinnate foliage – whats not to like?

Convolvulus cneorum – the hotter it gets the more this silver leaved convolvulus likes it!

Euphorbia – with their semi succulent stems most garden euphorbias seem to stand up well to heat and drought. The smaller, prostrate ones such as E.myrsinites seem to actually revel in it, with the taller characias types also coping well. An exception would be E.dulcis which is a more fragile woodlander, whose stems need to be cut right down after a dry spell.

Genista and Cytisus brooms prefer the hotter spots in the garden

Grevillea – the cultivar ‘Canberra Gem’ seems particularly happy in my gravel garden this summer.

Hibiscus syriacus

Hypericum – My ‘Rowallane’ bushes look as happy as they did at the start of June. Beware of H. calycinum, though, which can be very invasive.

Lagerstroemia indica crepe myrtle- this shrub/small tree actually needs a good whack of heat to produce its stunning clusters of late summer flowers – mine (I think it’s ‘Braise d’Ete’) also has amazing red autumn colour.

Lavender and rosemary – very drought resistant in the ground – less so in a pot.

Nandina domestica – heavenly bamboo – not a true bamboo, looks like one but much better behaved, this rugged little shrub seems to use water very efficiently, still produced creamy panicles of flowers in the hottest spells which lead onto clusters of red berries in autumn.

Nerium oleander

Phlomis – P. fruticosa with yellow hooded flowers or P. italica with pink flowers. Also the pale yellow russelliana

Physocarpus – all seem happy in the heat, including P. “Lady in Red’ and ‘Dart’s Gold’

Potentilla – not one of my personal favourites but pretty drought tolerant

Tree poppy- Romneya coulterii – but does have a suckering habit.

Roses – Being very deep rooted, most roses will survive a drought but the only ones in my garden that look supremely happy in a heatwave are the scotch briar roses Rosa spinosissima I have a double form, and Louise rates the creamy cultivar ‘Dunwich Rose’ – I bought Caroline and I one each named ‘Mary Queen of Scot’s’ in the sell off from the Binnys Plant stand at Chelsea this year, and it’s still looking remarkably chipper even though it’s still encased in its original small pot. They only flower once in early summer but have lovely ferny foliage and small dark hips. Beware though – if they’re happy they sucker like mad, so best grown in isolation

Salvia x jamensis and other shrubby salvias

Sambucus – All my ornamental elders such as ‘Black Lace’ are faring very well without water, and providing glossy and striking foliage among the perennials.

Santolina chaemaecyparissus – lavender cotton. a low evergreen shrub with silvery leaves (and a rather odd scent if you rub them!)

Sphaeralcea ‘Sour Up’, and ‘Childerley’ – these need a mild climate, but will flower for months in a hot, sunny summer.

Tamarix – often grown in hot windy seaside locations.

Teucrium chaemadrys – wall germander – low-growing late summer flowers looking like a glossy heather – seems impervious to heat or drought – very attractive to bees

Tree ferns – these are recommended as drought -tolerant by one of our readers.

Trees

Just a quick reminder that ALL newly-planted trees are going to need extra water and TLC in their first couple of years, before they get their roots properly established in the soil.

Albizia julibrissin, the Persian silk tree – thank you to one of our readers who has put forward this little tree, that performs brilliantly in a heatwave

Catalpa, Indian bean tree – can get big, but ours has lovely large leaves and gorgeous summer flowers, so if you do have the space, I can recommend it.

Eucalyptus – most have the ideal foliage for heat, and many have very attractive bark

Gleditzia triacanthos – the Honey Locust – we’ve never seen ours looking so happy!

The evergreen Magnolia grandiflora looks supremely happy in the heat, but it’s a whopping great thing – there is a dwarf version ‘Little Gem’ that would be more manageable in a smaller garden

Olive trees – these are becoming more of a common sight planted in the ground in Southern England – they may lose their leaves in a late winter blast of cold, but seem to recover. Even in a pot they seem to exist happily on very little water.

Ground cover

Armeria – thrift is okay in a hot spot

Bergenia – elephants ears also tolerate drought once they’re ‘dug in’

Epimedium for shady areas

Geranium macrrorhizum will provide good ground cover in semi-shaded places with scented foliage

Helianthemum – rock roses

Thyme and grounding hugging sedums for sunny areas

Climbers

Clematis nepalensis – a rare clematis that actually loses all its leaves and goes dormant in the summer months (so avoids drought damage but does look alarming dead! ) but then springs to life in the autumn and flowers over the winter months

Ivies – their tough leathery leaves seem impervious to weather extremes and can also act as natural air conditioning if planted against a house wall.

Perennial sweet peas – Lathyrus species- seems very tolerant of heat and dryness, though they will go to seed quicker. This is the very opposite of the annual species who loathe having dry feet!

Trachelospermum – evergreen either the white or there is a pretty creamy coloured one – very scented

Herbaceous plants

Achillea

Agastache

Alstroemeria

Althaea cannabina – I can’t speak too highly of this wonderful hollyhock relative that shoots up in midsummer to present a diaphanous cloud of small pink flowers, dancing gaily no matter how hot it gets. Seeds itself around when happy.

Callirhoe involucrata – the purple poppy-mallow

Cynara cardunculus, cardoon

Catanache

Crocosmia

Diascia personata – highly recommended. One of our readers says that this has apparently flowered non- stop throughout the heatwave

Digitalis ferruginea, the perennial foxglove – this has been a lifesaver in my garden this summer, providing pretty bee-friendly vertical accents when others have faltered.

Echinacea – we’re getting reports from our readers that echinacea are coping well with the heat with Pallida, White Swan, Pink Parasol and Tomato Soup all getting the thumbs up

Echinops – globe thistles. They look right at home in the sun.

Echium – one of readers has reminded us that if your garden is mild enough to sustain them over winter several species of echium including the towering E. pininana will cope with heat and drought

Erodium – related to geraniums and pelargoniums these diminutive alpines form satisfying mounds of ferny foliage and flower all summer long on hot walls or crevices. There are lots of different species and cultivars, but beware, collecting them can be a bit addictive (but you’ll be in good company – my current favourite is the sulphur yellow Erodium chrysanthum)

Eryngium. With their deep tap root, referred to as ‘the old world’ species (E. plenum, alpinum, bourgatii, giganteum etc) they seem to thrive in drought, whereas the new world species (E. yuccifolium and pandanifolium) have shallower root systems that can struggle in prolonged drought, with the exception being the huge E. pandanifolium ‘Physic Purple’ which seems to need a long hot summer to prompt its massive flower spikes to make the effort

Gaura lindheimeri

Hyelotelephium – Sedum – succulent stems and flowers protect them beautifully

Ipomopsis rubra – a flowering plant of the phlox family, also known as the standing cypress, or Texas plume

Kniphofia, red hot pokers – as their name suggests, they like it hot!

Lychnis coronaria, rose campion – a short-lived perennial in either magenta, white, or pink-flushed. Seeds around when happy but never a problem

Nepeta, catmint – I cut mine back in the middle of this year’s very hot July, and it’s full of flowers (and hundreds of bees and butterflies) again now, without being given a drop of water.

Origanum, marjoram

Oenothera, evening primrose – rests up during the day and comes to life at night.

Papaver rupifragum, the Spanish poppy – the name says it all, very happy in baking soil.

Perovskia – pruned hard in late spring to a woody framework, this will withstand really hot conditions with pale purple flowers for weeks in August and September

Verbena bonariensis – the plant that never falters!

Zauschneria – a species of willow herb from the dry slopes of California.

Annuals and biennials

Cichorium intybus,  chicory

Eschscholtzia, Californian poppies

Galactites tomentosa, the purple milk thistle. There is also a very refined white form

Verbascum, giant mulleins – these produce a basal rosette in the first year and a huge flowering spike in the second summer. The cultivar ‘Arctic Summer’ comes highly recommended by one of our readers, and has apparently flowered magnificently in the heat wave.

Grasses

Briza maxima, quaking grass – can self-seed invasively but very happy (and pretty) in very poor soil

Festuca glauca – dwarf forms and ‘Elijah Blue’ particularly good in drought

Miscanthus nepalensis – a smallish slightly tender grass that produces gorgeous coppery golden tassels in a hot summer, common name the Himalayan fairy grass and also quite happy in a pot

Most grasses have evolved in hot, dry prairie situations so will cope with a British heatwave. The low-growing Stipa tenuissima is particularly joyful as is its taller cousin Stipa gigantea.

Bulbs, tubers etc.

Agapanthus – these love the heat but will need a decent amount of water if grown in a pot

Crinum – despite their large strappy leaves crinums are sun worshippers and will produce stunning white or pink scented lily-like flowers in early autumn if planted in the right place. They will however need a small mechanical digger to shift their enormous bulbs if ever you tire of them

Dahlia coccinea

Summer-dormant bulbs such as nerines and Amaryllis belladonna – soak up the heat and flower in the autumn

Pot plants

Aeonium

Aloe

Echeveria

Oleander

Pelargonium – obviously!

Sempervivum – house leeks