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Summertime - and the Plants Are all Crispy

© Carol Wallace

(with apologies to George Gershwin)

It's that time again - the time when the earth swallows any stray drop of water with an almost audible slurp, the less stalwart plants start to droop and pout, and even the leaves on the trees look dusty. Drought.

It came early this year. Normally we have a very wet spring, where plants grow lushly - and then, just when they get accustomed to a plentiful supply of water, Mother Nature takes it all away. This year we didn't even have a wet spring. Just glowering skies and parched earth.

I'm not sure whether it's because the plants have made the adjustment already, or because so many of the things I grow are relatively drought tolerant - but they really don't look too terribly deprived despite the fact that we have had only two or three rains in the last seven weeks. Even the Ligularia, a known lush when it comes to lapping up the water, stands tall and firm.

Of course I knew about the thirsty tendencies of Ligularia, and planted it along with a handful of polymer crystals which soak up the water that does come to it, and holds it, releasing it slowly back into the earth, I do that for special plants when I really want to grow them in difficult spots. But planting whole gardens with polymer crystals would cost an exorbitant amount - so most of them have to survive on their own. And that's why I have learned over the years to practice Xeriscaping - planting in such a way as to minimize water use.

Partly I do this because I'm lazy. Dragging a hose around is hard work. Partly I do it because I am naturally attracted to the plants that seem to do well in dry conditions. It could be that we learn to love the plants that thrive for us - and since we have a drought nearly every summer, I have learned to love ones that can survive it.

Characteristics of Drought Tolerant Plants
That's the first key to Xeriscaping - using drought tolerant plants. These tend to have certain easily identifiable characteristics. The first are those with taproots, which can go deeply into the soil seeking moisture. Notice how Queen Anne's Lace never looks wilted, even though it insists on growing in areas you have no intention of watering? Poppies, asclepias, daylilies and gaura also have taproots.