PrøvGOLD- Free

Help Drought-Proof Your Garden

Garden Gate|Issue 172 - August 2023
If you're tired of watering to keep your garden going through a hot, dry summer, take a few tips from Denver Botanic Gardens' Panayoti Kelaidis.
- Sherri Ribbey
Help Drought-Proof Your Garden

He's had to learn how to create a good-looking garden that thrives through heat and drought and has some advice that can help all of us.

PANAYOTI KELAIDIS

Director of Horticulture Outreach, Denver Botanic Gardens

RIGHT PLANT, RIGHT PLACE For starters, Panayoti suggests doing an inventory of your yard with an eye out for microclimates. Make sure you're growing drought-tolerant plants in the driest spots and not trying to baby something along that isn't happy there. You might find dry microclimates at the top of a slope or even in the shade of shallow-rooted trees. Most common are spots near driveways, house foundations or retaining walls, where heat from the sun is often reflected onto the garden. Panayoti likes to say that the north side of his house is like Alaska, and the south side is like Arizona. He grows ferns and woodland plants on the north side, while xeric plants make their home on the hot, dry Arizona side. If a plant is struggling, it's probably not in the right place.

HOW PLANTS TOLERATE DROUGHT Characteristics that help plants through dry times include large, thick or fleshy root systems and leaves that are slender, succulent, waxy or fuzzy.

Prairie plants, such as little bluestem, purple coneflower and cup plant, grow roots deep into the soil to seek out moisture. Fleshy bulbous roots or bulbs of all types, including the foxtail lily at right and the woody rhizomes of bearded iris, store water. Small-leaved herbs, such as lavender, rosemary and fennel, are able to withstand long periods without rain.

Meet a few of Panayoti's favorite drought-tolerant perennials on the next page some of them might surprise you! 

Foxtail lily

Eremurus spp. and hybrids

Denne historien er fra Issue 172 - August 2023-utgaven av Garden Gate.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9500+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra Issue 172 - August 2023-utgaven av Garden Gate.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9500+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA GARDEN GATESe alt
Viburnum
Garden Gate

Viburnum

This versatile group of shrubs has year-round garden appeal. Which one is right for your garden?

time-read
9 mins  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025
8 Solutions for Spring Garden Problems
Garden Gate

8 Solutions for Spring Garden Problems

Spring is full of anticipation and hope for a successful garden season.

time-read
4 mins  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025
Garden Gate

2025 READER CONTAINER CHALLENGE

Don't get stuck with the same old container combinations year after year.

time-read
6 mins  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025
Drought - Tolerant Beauty
Garden Gate

Drought - Tolerant Beauty

Faced with hot, dry summers, this gardener has created a resilient garden filled with tough plants.

time-read
7 mins  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025
THE BIG HAUL
Garden Gate

THE BIG HAUL

WITH THE RIGHT TOOLS, HEAVY LIFTING IN THE GARDEN GETS A LOT EASIER. THESE ARE OUR FAVORITES!

time-read
5 mins  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025
POWDERY MILDEW
Garden Gate

POWDERY MILDEW

Learn how to identify, control and prevent this common fungal disease.

time-read
3 mins  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025
Annual eranium
Garden Gate

Annual eranium

Bold blooms and fancy foliage keep your garden filled with color from planting to frost.

time-read
9 mins  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025
How Many Hydrangeas Are Too Many Hydrangeas?
Garden Gate

How Many Hydrangeas Are Too Many Hydrangeas?

Since I was a teenager and read Summer Since Sisters by Judy Blume for the first time, I have wanted to vacation on Martha's Vineyard.

time-read
1 min  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025
GARDEN ESSENTIALS ELEVATE YOUR GARDEN WITH RAISED BEDS.
Garden Gate

GARDEN ESSENTIALS ELEVATE YOUR GARDEN WITH RAISED BEDS.

ELEVATE YOUR GARDEN WITH RAISED BEDS.

time-read
3 mins  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025
Spring Ephemerals to Treasure in the Garden
Garden Gate

Spring Ephemerals to Treasure in the Garden

When you walk through the woods in early spring before the trees leaf out, you may be delighted to see lovely wildflowers blooming before anything else is even up and growing.

time-read
10 mins  |
Issue 182 - Spring 2025

Vi bruker informasjonskapsler for å tilby og forbedre tjenestene våre. Ved å bruke nettstedet vårt samtykker du til informasjonskapsler. Finn ut mer