UMN Display and Trial Garden: Welcome to July!

It's been a hot, dry week in the garden. After a couple months with constant rain, it was nice to have a few dry days. That said, let's hope it rains this weekend (after everyone has gotten their 4th of July celebrations in, of course). As we wait for rain, a post on drought tolerant plants seems appropriate.

Using drought tolerant plants in the landscape is really a smart choice for everyone. For starters, you won't have to spend time watering as often. In addition, water conservation is becoming a more important issue as clean water becomes more and more scarce and our population is on the increase. Choosing appropriate plants is the best way to conserve water in the landscape. Many Minnesota native species are drought tolerant, so inadvertently you will also be helping spread native plants!

Many juniper and pine species are drought tolerant and can be good landscape trees and shrubs. Bur oaks are a good choice if a larger tree is needed. There are a ton of good perennial options out there, so I will just list some of my favorites:

Yarrow
Echinacea
Rudbeckia
Irises
Peonies
Salvia
Sedum
Little Bluestem
Baptisia
Check out this list from the UMN extension for more options:
http://www.arboretum.umn.edu/droughttolerantplants.aspx

During last summer's drought, I saw a ton of dead lawns. If you are thinking of redoing your turf grass, consider using a Fescue mix instead of Kentucky Bluegrass for a more drought tolerant lawn. Some seed companies are even selling slow growing species, cutting down on how frequently mowing is necessary.

Hopefully this dry spell doesn't last. Our vegetable garden has been loving the rain.

On a lighter note, check out what is in bloom right now in the garden!