Top 5 plants for sun, shade, drought & pest control

Drought

Drought-tolerant plants can take low rainfall and neglect from gardeners and still bounce back to perform beautifully. When mixing potting soil in containers or preparing to plant in a flowerbed, mixing in a water-retentative polymer helps to take what moisture a plant receives and stretch it out.  The polymer absorbs the water and then as the plant needs it, it will draw the water out of the polymer and use it. 

1.    Chrysocephalum Yellow- Flambe-Strawflower:

• Deadheading not necessary for continuous bloom. Plants will "bury their dead" (new flowers will quickly cover old flowers) so no deadheading necessary.
• Heat tolerant
• Drought tolerant

2.    Lantana Tiddly Winks Yellow:

• Widely cultivated for their flowers in tropical and subtropical environments and (as an annual plant) in temperate climates.
• Known as "ham and eggs" in Gulf Coast

3.    Phlox Intensia Neon Pink:

• Holds up during the heat of summer. It can also handle a light frost so it will be one of the last blooms to fade in your fall garden.
• Two colors that are really appealing are the Intensia Cabernet, a deep magenta, and Intensia Neon Pink, which is hot pink.
• Also good for sun

4.    Euphorbia Diamond Frost:

• Very delicate looking
• Heat- and drought-tolerant Diamond Frost blooms constantly throughout the summer and into fall.

5.    Scaevola Whirlwind White

• Whirlwind White has long trailing branches ideal for containers and hanging baskets.
• The bright white flowers are clustered together on the stems to heighten their visual appeal.

Critter Resistant

We'll mostly stick to deer as far as critters go, but many gardeners also face the destruction from rabbits, neighbors' cats and squirrels. Try using a commercial product that's safe for pets and the environment.  These are normally made chock-full of pepper products, namely capsaicin, so you might want to use rubber gloves when handling it and you will need to reapply after a rain but dang if these don't seem to detour many pests from robbing your garden of good things to eat and look at.

1.    Cleome Senorita Rosalita:

• The blooms explode out of the top of the stem in a beautiful burst of color.
• The stalks are also less thorny or sticky and have a more compact form with a strong upright habit which means less staking.

2.    Gold Edge Thyme:

• Easy to grow.
• Thyme should be trimmed periodically and not overwatered. This keeps them tidy, fresh and healthy.
• Cut them while they are actively growing and soon the scars will be completely hidden by new greenery.

3.    Lamb's Ear:

• Best in full sun and well drained soil.
• Adds texture and color to the perennial garden.

4.    Lavender:

• Part of the mint family.
• It is occasionally found growing wild, as garden escapees, well beyond their natural range.

5.    Plectranthus - Cuban Oregano:

• This is not a true oregano, but is used in place of oregano in Carribbean cuisines.
• It is fleshy, grey/green fuzzy leaves on a stocky trunk.
• Most gringos grow this in a pot as an ornamental.
• It is a very unusual and fragrant plant.

P. Allen Smith is the CEO of Hortus Ltd., a media production company responsible for two nationally syndicated half hour television programs, numerous magazine columns, a popular website, a best-selling series of garden-design-lifestyle books, lecture series, and news reports which air on stations around the country as well as on The Weather Channel.  He is also the principle in P. Allen Smith and Associates, a landscape design firm.

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