Full Sun Plants for Hot Climates
Full sun plants will turn hot, dry areas from arid to amazing! Tough, drought-tolerant, and gorgeous, many of these varieties continue blooming through fall. Selections include favorites such as Agastache, Coreopsis, Dianthus, Echinacea, Phlox, Salvia and many more.
Advantages of Full Sun Plants
If you live in a hot, dry climate or heat waves sweep your area, plants for full sun are ideal choices. In addition to thriving in heavy heat, they bring many other advantages to the landscape:
- Low maintenance / minimal water needs—conserving water and reducing irrigation expenses.
- Deep root systems which keep soil in place and prevent erosion.
- High disease resistance.
- Attractive to pollinators including bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.
- Numerous full sun plants are also great for cut flowers!
Sun Bather Selections for Spring through Fall
We offer nearly 500 extraordinary full sun plants for a hot, dry site. Many of these varieties are long lasting, providing glorious color and texture for more than one season. Here's a sampling of some of our popular perennials that like it hot.
For a Sizzling Spring:
Iberis Purity blooms in pristine white early to late spring. Cascading mounds of flowers create a floral waterfall—a rock garden favorite.
Fritillaria Sunset is a stand-out mid to late spring. Bright orange florets topped with spiked green foliage emerge from upright burgundy stems.
Summer Sun Lovers:
Asclepias Tuberosa, also known as Butterfly Weed, welcomes butterflies on citrusy orange blooms early in the summer. As tough as it is graceful, this plant happily soaks up the sun into late summer.
Allium Summer Beauty stands up to the summer heat with upright, lavender globe-shaped flowers. Butterflies adore the blooms.
Blooming into Fall:
Gaillardia Arizona Apricot is a prolific bloomer. Compact mounds of amber, apricot and gold flowers fill the garden through fall. This care-free heat lover is a pollinator favorite!
Sedum Lemonjade is filled with late summer buds which open to soft yellow flowers in fall. Super drought tolerant, this Sedum performs best with plenty of sun.
A Place in the Sun
The decades old gardening principle “the right plant in the right place” continues to be one of the keys to successful growing. Provide sun-worshipping plants their place in the sun and they’ll deliver enduring rewards.
