Flowers for Southwest Florida Gardens

Full-Sun-Tolerant

• If your garden lies mostly in open areas exposed to full sun, you'll need plants that are very heat-tolerant. The blackberry lily (Iris domestica), suitable for U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 through 10, blooms from late spring to mid-fall with bold, red-orange blossoms. Chrysanthemums (Chrysanthemum grandiflora) are hardy flowers growing in USDA zones 8 through 10a that bloom in spring and fall. They come in a variety of shades and make excellent cutting flowers. If you love soft pastel shades of blue, pink and lavender, consider summer snapdragon (Angelonia augustofolia). Used as an annual in South Florida, they can be grown practically year-round. Zinnias (Zinnia spp.) are low-maintenance blooming annuals that make attractive border plants. They're also suitable container plants.

Shade-Tolerant

• If your flower bed is in a partially to heavily shaded area, you can still have attractive flowers blooming. Hardy begonias (Begonia spp.) grow well in USDA zones 9 through 11 in partial shade and are well-suited for patio hanging planters and pots. The golden shrimp plant (Pachystachys lutea) catches the eye with long, feathery golden spikes. It thrives in USDA zones 10 and 11. For something classic, consider walking iris (Neomarica spp.), with white, blue or yellow blooms you can enjoy from spring through fall. Walking iris grow in zones 8 through 11.

Drought-Tolerant

• The dry season runs from November to May in South Florida. With the area's sandy soil conditions, the quick drainage that serves so well during the wet summer months can be the death of many plants in the winter. To make it worse, city watering restrictions kick in at this time, making it even more difficult to keep up with your garden's water needs. Drought-tolerant plants can save your garden. In USDA zones 8 through 10, African iris (Dietes spp.) blooms year-round with white and yellow flowers. Golden dewdrops (duranta erecta), grown in USDA zone 11, sport clusters of small blossoms that drip off gracefully bending branches. Pentas (Pentas lanceolata) have colorful cluster heads of tiny blossoms. They grow in USDA zones 8b through 11.

Salt-Tolerant

• If you live in a costal area, salt-tolerant plants are a must. Beach sunflowers (Helianthus debilis) can grow up to 10 feet high. Most sunflowers are annuals, but beach sunflowers grown south of USDA zone 8 are perennials. Blue daze (Evolvulus glomerata) spreads through the garden with small bluish blossoms year-round, growing in USDA zones 8 through 11. Bush daisy (Euryops pectinatus) blooms spring through fall in USDA zones 8 through 10. Lantana (Lantana spp.) is a ground covering with red, pink, yellow, orange or white small blossoms that grows well in USDA zones 8 through 11. All these salt-tolerant plants are also tolerant of sun and drought and adapt well to a variety of poor soil conditions, so they're perfectly suited for life on the Gulf.