Landscape Plants Needing Low Water and High Sun

Annuals

• Annuals that require full sun but need little water include sunflower varieties, such as the red-orange Mexican sunflower, Tithonia rotundifolia, which grows 4-6 feet tall, and the common sunflower, Helianthus annuus, which can reach 10 feet. Other annuals that fit these growing conditions are the creeping zinnia, Zinnia angustifolia, suitable for flower beds and borders, along with purslane, Portulaca oleracea, an Indian native adapted as a ground cover or as a container plant, according to the Missouri Botanical Garden. Cosmos sulphureus is another annual that grows well in sunny sites without much water.

Deciduous Shrubs

• Japanese barberry, Berberis thunbergii, is a deciduous shrub that qualifies as high sun, low-water and has many cultivars, including Rose Glow and Harlequin. The lead plant, Amorpha canescens, is a versatile species good for native or wildflower gardens. It's able to grow in colder climates as far north as United States Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone 2 to the warmth of zone 9. Lead plant blooms in late spring, producing attractive blue-purple flowers. The drought-tolerant Siberian pea tree, Caragana arborescens, growing to 20 feet, is a deciduous shrub appropriate as a windbreak, screen or hedge on full-sun, dry sites. Different varieties of lilacs, Syringa, grow under these conditions as well.

Trees

• Blue ash, Fraxinus quadrangula, is a member of the ash family that handles dry sites and full sun. Blue ash makes an attractive shade or street tree, growing to between 50 and 75 feet. The callery pear, Pyrus calleryana, is an ornamental tree with cultivars that should be carefully chosen as some are weak-branched and prone to fireblight. Oak species that grow where the sun is abundant and have low water needs are the bur oak, Quercus macrocarpa; blackjack oak, Quercus marilandica; scarlet oak, Quercus coccinea; and the white oak, Quercus alba. The pistachio tree, Pistacia chinensis, at up to 30 feet tall, works well as a patio tree and in small gardens. The deep taproot of the short-leaf pine, Pinus echinata, helps this evergreen survive where conditions are dry, but makes it a difficult tree to transplant.

Herbaceous Perennials

• Many herbaceous perennials will thrive without much water when planted in full sun. Yarrow, Achillea millefolium, comes in multiple hybrids, with the flower colors ranging from the pink of Montrose Rose to the yellow of Moonshine. Create butterfly gardens with the butterfly weed, Asclepias tuberosa, as a focal point. This perennial will develop even in poor soils. Tickseed, Coreopsis, is another perennial that tolerates full sun and lack of water, with varieties such as Lightning Flash, which yields yellow flowers on plants from 3-5 feet tall and other cultivars small enough to serve as ground cover. Perennial sunflowers, including the ox-eye type, Heliopsis helianthoides, survive in dry, sun-splashed areas.