Gardening

Flowers for summer color

by Dr. William M. Johnson, Galveston County Extension Agent - Horticulture

April 19, 2006

Lantana performs well in hot weather and is available in a wide variety of flower colors.

Photo credit: William M. Johnson.

If you've waited until now to get your flower bed planted or if early spring flowers are beginning to fade, it's not too late to plant for summer color. The following are some of the flowers that you can still plant which will perform well in hot weather.

LANTANA:

For an extra hot, dry place, try lantana. Lantanas are available in wide variety of flower color variations: yellow with orange, white, the old-fashioned lavender and many others. Small plants planted now will quickly grow into ground cover and by midsummer you'll have a riot of color. Lantana is a tough plant and can occasionally be seen growing in abandoned home sites. Lantana is also a good choice for a hanging basket in the sun.

ZINNIA:

Zinnias provide summer heat tolerance and the ability to grow under adverse conditions. The summer garden is not complete without a colorful mass of this old favorite. Even though zinnias have been around for generations, there are many new and improved varieties with vivid colors and durability. Zinnia blooms now range in size from tiny border hybrids to giant dahlia-flowered types.

PORTULACA:

Portulaca is unsurpassed as a summer border or as a rock garden plant. Often called "Moss Rose," this summer annual prefers the sun and will tolerate dry, hot conditions to produce vivid blankets of colors.

SALVIA

A persistent summer annual, salvias are available in a range of flower colors from bright scarlet to blue that bloom throughout the hot summer until cut down by frost. The brick red varieties are most showy when displayed against a background of green or white. The faded blooms of this annual should be deadheaded often to encourage abundant color.

COSMOS:

For rich yellow or orange blossoms in midsummer up until late fall, try comos. Its success often spread to abandoned gardens and sometimes escapes cultivation, demanding little or no care. The All-America selection "Diablo" produces brilliant-colored blooms which will brighten any garden bed until winter.

MARIGOLDS:

Marigolds love hot weather and, with the exception of having an attack of spider mites occasionally, you'll find them easy to grow. If mites attack, use Kelthane once a week for three weeks, being careful to spray the underside of the leaves. New marigolds being brought out each year are almost as numerous as new petunias, so you will probably have a hard time deciding which ones to plant.

Especially intriguing are the mule or triploid marigolds, which don't produce seed and thus continue to bloom throughout the season. Some of the large-flowered forms are also spectacular and make good hot weather plants.

GALLARDIA OR FIREWHEEL:

This annual that grows along the roadside but there are a number of improved varieties offered in the seed catalogs and you should try some of these for spectacular hot-weather flowers. While the wild form will usually produce flowers an inch to an inch and a half across, it's not unusual for some of the cultivated varieties to be four inches or more in diameter. Some of the selections are perennial in their growth habit.

Dr. Johnson is a horticulturist with the Galveston County
Extension Office of Texas Cooperative Extension, Texas A&M University. Visit his web site at http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/galveston/index.htm

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