Oh, I forgot Russian sage!

Well, when we moved into our house, we did a little soil temperature test with a gadget my husband had from the lab at work and found out that a number of places in the yard were 100+ in the summer time. So, we started out with arid plants. When the trees grow up, there may be shade, and then I can put in those juicy shade plants.

In addition to those mentioned, we put in arid shrubs like bush honeysuckle, fragrant sumac groundcover, groundcover forsythia, caryopteris, low growing evergreens, and snowberry. We put in some red switch grass, a rose of sharon, a leonard messel magnolia, a swamp white oak and two serviceberries. I have one butterfly bush. The dwarf cranberry viburnums aren't supposed to like drought, but they are making it ok. The lawn I ignore and corralled it into a small area. It's been brown for a month, doesn't need mowing, and is my husband's chore.

They all are doing a great job handling it and looking good, and up till today I've only been watering once a week. They are hardworking friends. It's too hot now to make them suffer, though, and I think I will give them a drink every evening until the heat subsides some or it rains. I water the trees with those 20-gallon gater bags.

My gaura "whirling butterflies" is doing well. And for shrubs, my lespedeza is doing well, too, though it's just in its first year.

Penstemons do really well during drought periods!

I have a Siberian Iris that does beautifully. I know they are associated with water, but this one was in a field when we moved onto the property and I have it in all of my gardens...it does just great. Fantastic, tall purple blooms...tons of them.

I have one garden in front of my shed that is called the "no water" garden. It's a good trek from the house and I am lazy when it comes to hauling the hose to distant lands....so I totally redid the garden last year and I will plant NOTHING in this garden that needs major tending to.

So far, along with a lot of shrubs and a serviceberry tree for the birds, I have these drought tolerant perennials:
salvia, yarrow, lamb's ear, Autumn Joy sedum, aster, mallow (fastigiata), peonies, the Siberian Iris I mentioned, goldenrod, day lilies, heliopsis and some phlox. (Although the jury is NOT out on whether or not these phlox will do well in this dry land!) There's still room for more so I have plans right now to add rudbeckia triloba which is native here in Wisconsin...very tall and re-seeding. That should give me a lot of great bloom in late autumn until it freezes. I did have a bunch of mums but they all died this winter. Also, I have something called horseheal...I think that's a yellow flowering, daisy-like perennial...I haven't seen it bloom yet, but it got through the winter spendidly and has formed a nice little mound of foliage.

I have five phlox plants, and they get really disgusted when they get too much water and turn yellow near the bottom. I think being wet rots their roots. They love it dry and hot, IME. Should be good. I saw the purple wild kind growing all over the roadsides and fields here in the spring, when they bloom, and it was a real dry spring here.

Goldenrod sounds like a good idea. And when we lived in Arizona, a type of desert mallow with bright salmon/orange flowers called Globe mallow grew voluntarily in the alleys and out in the desert. People also planted them.

Not suprisingly, given my user name, Russian Sage is my favorite. Little Bluestem is also handling the current drought without a whimper. One of the most drought tolerant plants I have seen to date is gro-low sumac. Planted it underneath an overhang and it is surviving nicely. It gets watered rarely, maybe every 2 months or so. Pretty amazing IMO.

I would be careful with goldenrod. I planted 3 and now its everywhere! It spreads by runners!

I've never tried pentesemon 'cause I didn't think they were hardy in our climate. Does anyone know which ones do well here?

I love Penstemon. I have several 'Huskers Red' and they are totally hardy, if not a bit evergreen even. Great plant.

Ornamental grasses are typically quite drought tolerant, and I have lOTS of them.

Coreopsis vareities tend to fare well in the heat, too. Moonbeam is my fav.

Penstemons are very popular plants in Arizona, and I guess when we moved here 10 years ago from there, they just hadn't reached here. I saw all kinds of columbine in Chicagoland gardens, which grow wild in high elevations in Arizona, but no penstemon. I'm glad it made it here.

My ice plant is thriving like crazy, it's planted in total sun, had little water and is green green with bunches of healthy flowers and growing taller by the day. Although it got smooshed a bit lately - I think the cat has been laying in it - it must feel cool.

You have a hardy ice plant? That's pretty neat. I remember that from trips to the beach when we lived in California.

What's a gater bag, Oswegian? I have a couple of trees that could probably use a nice drink! Thanks.

Taupe79, I spelled it wrong. It's gatOr, apparently. They are vinyl bags with small holes in the bottom that release the 20-gals of water over several hours. I bought two at the Greenview here in Oswego, and they are great, IMO.

I have also seen a smaller one that lies flat, for use around shrubs, I imagine. I might get a couple of those for our serviceberries, which have multiple trunks, like a shrub.

By coincidence, the bags are mentioned in a Chicago Tribune article from yesterday (6/29), called "Forget the grass: Save the trees!" They quoted the Naperville forestry supervisor to say they had used the gator bags in the past and bought a lot more this year.

It's a very interesting article; one thing they mention is that they have taken the Chicago river fireboats off regular duty to pump and water the trees along the river park! You have to register at the Tribune, but it is free. I will post the article if people can't get it; but the URL is:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0506290171jun29,1,4210368.story

I'll include the official Treegator website below, where there is one of the bags shown in use in the front page photo.

Here is a link that might be useful: Treegator.com

Moonbeam coreopsis and daylilies are my favorites for drought. I also love the annual vinca they just keep on blooming no matter what.
blewsey

Yes! I think I forgot to mention moonbeam coreopsis, that's my favorite perennial overall.

Oswegian...thanks for mentioning that phlox don't like it wet. My Phlox never looked good my first few years of gardening and I always thought it was because I didn't water enough. But maybe it was the heavy, heavy clay, which has now broken down a lot because of the years of composting, etc.. I don't know. But they do look nice right now and they have definitely not been watered a whole lot this year.

Mary4b, I did exactly the same thing when my phlox went in, so I learned the hard way, too. :-)

So, how about cacti? Yesterday in the Chicago Tribune garden section they featured a story on a fellow who has a cactus garden here in Chicagoland. You have to register to read the Trib, but it's free.

Since I moved here from Arizona, I have seen cactus a couple of times, at Illinois Beach State Park and the Morton Arboretum, and I have really been very curious about what kinds to get. I have a really hot front yard. There are no big trees yet, and it faces southwest. (It's great in the winter, btw! The sun just blasts in the front windows. The cats bask in the hot pools of light on the carpet like a beach.)

I'll include a URL, but the article starts out like this:
-------
Sunday, July 3

A cactus garden grows ... in Chicago

By Beth Botts
Tribune staff reporter
Published July 3, 2005

Rain isn't falling and lawns are turning brown. Experts are recommending that Chicago-area homeowners let their grass go dormant and spend their water on more vulnerable plants such as trees, but for some, it's hard to give up on the green lawn look.

If you were like Gary Janowitz of Chicago's Northwest Side, you wouldn't have a thing to worry about from this hot, dry weather. Your front yard would be full of prickly pear cacti with bright yellow flowers and they'd be loving it.

"The hotter it is, the better they do," Janowitz said. "If the city ever says, 'You can't water,' you have no problem..."
-------------

Here is a link that might be useful: A cactus garden grows ... in Chicago

I read that article as well and wondered what kind of cacti those were to be able to survive our frigid winters. Its worth doing some research...

A while back, I think the Morton Arboretum featured one of their flowering prickly pears on the cover of "Seasons," their member magazine. IIRC, the "Plains prickly pear" is one kind. I made an effort and located some prickly pear at the Arboretum, and it is growing in an area on a hillside that looks rocky-- probably very good drainage.

I have been seriously thinking about getting one for a pot. I don't know if that fellow from the article has put a lot of ammendments in his soil, but cacti like good drainage, and I can't guarantee them that in my yard. I can guarantee them heat and light, but I think they need some sand. Probably they would grow well along prairie river or creek banks.

They were doing pretty well at Illinois Beach State Park, but they were essentially growing in the dunes there. Clay soil would not be their first choice. Clay with gravel mixed in might be ok. I know they can grow seemingly right out of the rocks on the sides of canyons back home in AZ. They have big, intensely colorful, waxy blooms. Very lovely flowers.

I astounded some people back home when I told them cactus grows up here, LOL. But I have missed seeing cactus, and I'm glad they do. This hot, dry weather has me feeling pretty familiar.

I have Opuntia macrorhiza. It requires zero protection, and turns into a very cute cactus clump with pretty little orange/yellow flowers. I'm suprised more cacti aren't grown around here. Opuntia humifusa and Opuntia fragilis also are native to Illinois, and can survive here. Chollas and yuccas are also very interesting plants that have good chances in Chicago. Rock gardens with these plants, mixed with some wildflowers, lavenders, agaves, sage's and grasses make GREAT gardens, which require little water. In this drought, I am glad I have such a great low maintenance/ low water garden.

Opuntia Macrorhiza. These started from just one pad in the spring. In a few years, they will be large clumps.
{{gwi:1052018}}

{{gwi:1052019}}

Rock Garden, which I just did this spring.
{{gwi:1052021}}

{{gwi:1052022}}

Chitown

Wow, those look great! Is that a Washingtonia filifera you have there? I would be amazed if those are hardy. I miss those fan palms a lot. Now you make me wish that's what I had put in when we moved here!

Don't worry about it, it's never too late to start something new. There's a ton of desert plants that will grow here, if you try, you can feel right at home. Yes, that is a washy filifera or maybe filibusta. I got it for $14, so I thought I would give it a try and protect it this winter. I had great success with my windmill palm so I thought I would go for more of a challenge.

What type of garden did you put in when you moved here? I would think with your desert exerience you would know a thing or two and could be very well underway in your own desert garden. You can e-mail me for some plants you may want to try if you're interested.

Chitown

Chitown33, Since we moved here, I have been interested in plants that naturally do well here. We found a great designer and landscaping company that installed them. I just try to keep them going. I'm not a gardener; I'm really more of a natural history enthusiast. As time goes on, I am working up to gardening. I had to learn about handling really basic things like watering, fertilizing, mulching, weeding and stuff.

When I was in school at the U of A, I took a plant science class and had friends in RNR. The UA campus is a certified arboretum, and a stroll on campus is an education in what marvelous plants grow in their arid climate. Everybody in AZ lives outside and most have at least a passing acquaintance with nature. So, I am more inclinded to discover what grows here naturally or at least happily and the local ecology and weather.

It's been very absorbing here, and I am still enjoying learning about it. I was just kidding really, because I thoroughly enjoy my midwestern plants. Essentially, I just want a pot of prickly pear and maybe some creosote bush, for that great "desert rain" smell. Something I could bring in during the winter. We have several very hot southwest windows. We went on vacation back to Tucson, I picked up a package of ocotillo seeds, and it should be fun trying to get them started in a pot.

I almost forgot: the U of A has a great Virtual Plant Walk, with photos and blurbs about each plant on campus. It is a good introduction to arid plants.

http://arboretum.arizona.edu/pwalk/startpw.htm

Sorry, that's...

Here is a link that might be useful: U of Arizona Virtual Plant Walk

Thanks Oswegian. I'm glad that you are able to adjust to our climate and the plants that grow here.
That U of A plant walk sure is nice. That's just one reason why I love Arizona. I couldn't ever imagine moving from AZ to IL. Good luck with all of your plants!

Chitown

Thanks. :-) It was tough when we moved here, because we moved over Thanksgiving, 1994. That's the time of year in Tucson that the weather is just getting PRIMO! Here it was raining on moving-in day, and it snowed the next. This on a person who always said, when I die and go to hell, it will be COLD.

But I knew if I were going to survive, I had to fall in love with the real midwest in order to stop thinking about my old love. After 10 years, I have just about done it, I think. But I haven't quite stopped thinking about the one that got away.

Chitown,

Great pictures! What variety of cacti are those?

Well, this is helpful to me. I've been overwatering my babies and now I'm just letting them dry up a bit. I realized that when the daylilies and other plants were about a 1/4 bigger in size after I went a couple days not watering them, even in the heat we still had a couple weeks ago. I'll be dividing my revamped garden into hot/dry spots and hot spots that like a bit more water.

Bellarosa,
Thanks! Those are Opuntia Macrorhiza. They don't mind our winters and thrive during the summers.

Chitown

There are actually cactus growing in a forest preserve in Kane county IL. Down in a old gravel gulch - it is hard to get to - but it is definitely there. My gram had a prickly pear cactus in a pot all summer - in the winter she just used to pull the pot into the garage. Then back out again when it was warm. it did wonderfully.

My DH says he used to see cactus when he lived in WI - probably in sandy soil.

My fave drought tolerants are sedum and coneflowers. And hemerocallis (daylilies) - not completely drought tolerant though, they bloom much better with water. But they will survive no problem without it.