Profusion zinnias-yellow and orange

Portulaca is super happy!

Desert Marigolds look pristine and lush with silver foliage and have hundreds of light yellow blooms non stop. It is gorgeous and I wouldn't live without it. It is the most commented on plant in my landscape each summer and people walking by always want seeds.

Thelosperma can go the whole season seemingly on a drop of water and bloom profusely.

Both are tidy, well behaved plants that form mounds.

They have deep taproots so I am thinking that might be the key to finding what will do good in drought and still bloom in spite of the heat.

Pentas are cheerfully blooming away in this heat and drought.

Zinnia Pumila -Cut and Come Again

Cactusgarden, I checked with a local nursery, who had not heard of thelesperma - had heard of desert marigold but didnt have any. Did you get yours from a nursery or grow from seeds or ??

Thanks for all the replies - I am compiling a list and am looking at local nurseries for these plants - I am going to start redoing my beds early/midsummer with these plants that can survive the heat. I have not tried pentas in some years - Home Depot just got in a new shipment of plants today - going tomorrow to see what they have. My beds look wonderful in fall, winter and spring - now have to work on things that can stand summer - cant tolerate a season without color! Looking forward to more suggestions and photos if possible. Thanks!
Judith

Seeds from Plants of the Southwest. $3.00/pack. Free shipping. Plant them one year and after that they naturalize.

The Desert Marigold is Baileya multiradiata. too much water in spring will kill it, otherwise its easy. It might work as a perennial in zone 8. In Arizona its listed as a perennial but it will bloom until it freezes.

There is an annual Thelosperma and a perennial one. I got mine at the Farmer's Mkt here and the flowers are solid yellow, sometimes they have red centers. It reseeds but its not a problem. It has very fine threadlike leaves.

Gaillardia, aka Blanket flower. Non-stop bloom throughout 41 consecutive days of 100+ heat, 67 total this year. No melting or hibernation in extreme heat. And does not require daily watering once established.

Yes, Serena Angelonia! I bought 5 or 6 of these on the clearance rack at Lowe's in early June. Of course if I had known then that this was going to be the summer from he**, I would never have bought them then. Until just recently, they have bloomed like crazy. Now they've got an insect problem, just like everything else in my yard, but once I treat them, I really expect them to start blooming again.

Here's a Bing search of photos of them.

Laura Bush Petunia. 110 today and still blooming!

Teri

Cora vinca, celosia and yes Angelonia...........my angelonias are in containers so I can overwinter them. I have had them for several years. Also portulaca ... it just laughs at these temps.

portulaca...I don't think you can kill it! when it gets too long and scraggly, I just snip it off...dig a hole in the ground and put the snipped pieces in the ground. they never stop blooming,lol.

my angelonia is blooming...and my coral nymph salvias haven't stopped blooming and are still lush and green.

All of the above plus comphrena "Strawberry Fields". Reseeds readily but not invasive. Produces an abundance of blooms that look like stawberries. Takes the heat, but blooms may fade a little in this heat. I do too. Will trade seeds for stamps/postage.

Zinnia, some blanket flowers, snow on the prarie, hyacinth bean, tropical sage,mex feather grass and for shade in pots, begonia.

well morning glories seem to be immune either that or the scorching heat is popping all the seeds open its beginning to look like a ground cover.