Drought-Tolerant Plants for Hot, Dry Gardens
- Millawanda Urban Farming
- 6 days ago
- 6 min read
We are now experiencing the visible effects of climate change in our environment every year: Agricultural products are severely damaged by frost, drought, hail, and floods caused by excessive rainfall. As a result of natural disasters that have occurred this year alone, not only have the prices of vegetables and fruits increased, some of them have become hard to find. For example, last winter, cherry trees were unable to survive the ideal winter period, so the fruit harvest and therefore their prices were greatly affected, and we see days when cherries are bought for the price of gold in markets. According to the analysis of the General Directorate of Meteorology for 2025, drought will be largely effective in agricultural regions in the summer.
In the medium and long term, due to these factors outside of seasonal norms, the flowering period of plants will be shortened, and new plant diseases and fungi will emerge with the changing seasons.
Due to climate change, vineyards and olive groves will change geography in the near future.
Unless the nutrients that pollinators normally need are available in nature, we will lose many beneficial insects and pollinators that have a slow adaptation rate. This means fewer flowers, fewer fruits and fewer vegetables for the selfish and consumerist human race.
In these unfortunate and incompetent days during which we are struggling to protect our national treasure, namely our olive groves, how can we, as small producers and consumers, make our own environment and limited areas more productive and sustainable while struggling with drought, apart from non-existent agricultural policies and climate measures? Details below.
Tips to Protect Plants from Heat Stress
Due to rapidly and uncertainly rising temperatures, we may be having difficulty protecting our existing plant cover or our fields and orchards.
Due to the effects of the scorching sun and intense heat, problems such as sunburn, leaf deformation and failure to harvest due to heat stress may occur in plants. Symptoms include the plant bowing down during the day, the leaves turning yellow, not being able to recover even after watering and the formation of brown spots.
For this reason, you should water your plants from the bottom in the early morning or late evening. Especially if you water from the top in the afternoon, you will cause the water to evaporate from the plant leaves.
You can provide temporary/periodic shade to your plants that are exposed to a lot of sun during the day but are generally healthy, by using an umbrella or awning, or if it is not fixed, you can try changing its location. You can provide shade on your greenhouse to darken it slightly and reduce the temperature, and you can add windows/doors and ventilation.
Applying mulch to the soil during the summer heat is one of the most practical and clean methods: it reduces the temperature of the soil and prevents water evaporation. Light-coloured mulch (e.g. straw) is ideal as it does not attract the sun. By applying mulch, you can also prevent weeds to a great extent.
Especially during an extreme heatwave, fertilization should be avoided or should be applied diluted, or a slowly self-dissolving surface fertilizer should be used.
Save Water with Hydroponics
It is possible to save up to 90% of water with hydroponic farming thanks to highly available, low-budget systems. The main reason for this is that the water needed by the plant's roots is not supplied from outside and mixed with the soil, but rather circulated back to the water tank. Especially if sensitive about water shortage in the summer, it is no longer impossible to meet household needs with small-scale production without spending too much water.
Thanks to simple and economical hydroponic systems, it is possible to grow many vegetables that you generally consume with very little water consumption. You can grow all the greens that you can think of, such as spinach, lettuce, arugula, cress, and chard; in addition to general types such as tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, cucumber, pepper in a soilless environment, either indoors or outdoors, and thus prevent the watering issues.
Arid Region Plants and Their Features
Beyond protecting plants from drought in the current system, acquiring new species that are adapted to dry conditions is also an option.
Hardy plants that have evolved to adapt to heat and long periods of drought often have more succulent and plump flesh, such as cacti, or hairy, or gray/silver leaves. Drought-tolerant plants also have bulbous roots that hold water underground and deep-rooted root systems.
These slow-growing plants in energy-saving mode also require less water.
Heat and Drought-Resistant Trees
Drought-resistant, ideal for hot and dry climates, fruit trees have the ability to withstand periods of limited rainfall once they are well established and grown.
The olive tree is particularly suitable for growing in dry and rocky soils and loves full sun. But we unfortunately prioritize cutting down these olive trees that clean millions of tons of carbon dioxide from the world and extracting minerals from under the soil...
The fig tree requires very little water when mature due to its deep root structure and can easily live in hot and dry areas.
The pomegranate tree is resistant to high temperatures and dry soil, but seasonal conditions during the flowering period are also very important in terms of fruit yield.
The mulberry tree is not only resistant to drought, but is also useful for shading its surroundings.
The almond tree and the date palm are drought-resistant trees when mature, although they require abundant and deep watering during the growth phase.
Apricot trees are drought-tolerant but do not like humidity. They are ideal for seasons with dry and cold winters. They require well-drained soil.
Heat and Drought-Resistant Flowers and Plants
It is possible to equip areas in your home, balcony or garden where you cannot stand the heat, get a lot of sun and are far from a water source with these effortless and drought-resistant plants:
Santolina (Cotton Lavender) is a true Mediterranean climate plant, can grow up to 1 meter tall and is resistant to heat and drought with very little water consumption.
Linaria looks beautiful with its snapdragon-like flowers, attracts pollinators, requires very little water, and is resistant to direct sunlight and hot weather. It can re-emerge because it self-seeds. We planted this species as a seed mixture in the sunniest area of our garden, where it gets scorching hot afternoons, and we see that new ones emerge every week and attract bees.
We see poppy species bursting with their wonderful colors even in the most barren regions during long road trips in the summer. The poppy is a great pollinator flower that can withstand direct sun, heat, and little water. You can plant it from seed or buy it in pots and decorate sunny areas.
Stipa Gigantea or Horsetail Grass is another wonderful tall grass species that we see along the roadsides as we head south. This grass, which is native to Morocco and the Iberian region, is very suitable for hot and dry environments and can be used as ground cover or border in sunny areas.
Sedum, also known as Roof Grove or Hylotelephiums, are ideal for creating a plant cover that is resistant to constant sun and heat, and requires little water and maintenance. There are even works to reduce building heat by applying these to building roofs.
Known as Russian Sage or Salvia yangii, this perennial herbaceous plant, suitable for sunny landscaping thanks to its tall structure with wonderful purple flowers, is a species that does not require any maintenance when grown.
Heat and Drought-Resistant Agricultural Products and Vegetables
You should definitely try these vegetables, which are resistant to dry soil and drought, in areas that are left idle because they are too sunny.
Thanks to its deep root system, okra is a species that grows with little water and in hot weather. Amaranth, black-eyed peas, sweet potatoes, chickpeas, purslane, mustard, rosemary, thyme and lavender are also species that grow easily in dry areas.
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