Drought Survivors

Many of you probably saw my Facebook post about my garden of the month award. Don't be fooled; the drought has taken its toll in my gardens in a big way. What I haven't posted are the depressing sights of hydrangeas burned to a crisp. Coneflowers that have scraggly blooms and whose leaves have basically melted off. The poor daylilies that not only lost most of their foliage and had naked stems, but which had also fallen victim to a munching rodent, desperate for some form of moisture.

One thing for sure is that this garden sign at my entry has me standing outside in triple digit degree weather, hand watering one garden while the solitary sprinkler we own works on another part of the yard.

Despite the near and eminent death of some of my flowers, I wanted to share what is surviving. First and foremost, the boxwoods look fantastic. Glossy green foliage holds up in harsh conditions, including harsh winter winds, and now extreme drought. The key to my garden having as much life as it does is in the fact that I have a boxwood in every garden. Many of them are a mature size, so they have a lot of presence with the absence of other foliage. It's almost like what they do for the garden in the winter.

Next in the roll call of survivors is Annabelle hydrangeas. They have laughed at the temperatures and have not once been caught wilting. My blooms are already done and they have dried to a fantastic chartreuse green. If you live in the area, stop by for a bouquet. They are hanging over the sidewalk and need to be trimmed back.

Another noteworthy item are the liriopes. They have remained full and lush and appear unphased.

An unlikely candidate for the list, given the state of the other "natives", are the tiger lilies. They have very small blooms, but they aren't melting and the foliage is nice and fresh looking.

Now, granted, I do have a partial sun situation, with my own special micro-climates, but I think these are some plants to note for your own gardens. I am waiting for a big break in the weather to see how I can increase my liriope collection.