I live north of you and up here allysum dies as soon as summer hits. Dianthus has never stayed aluve very long in my beds. My hydrangeas froze last week and the will get leggy without pruning. Up north I had snaps but I had to deadhead them to continue blooming.

Your lantanas should come back up when the weather warms up. Far from being weaklings if they do come back they show themselves to be survivors.

I dont know how the rest will work in FL. I'm sure soneone will pitch in with more info.

Thanks for the help, although things sound bleak.

I cut the lantanas down to the ground, and then I read that you're supposed to wait to see which bits are still alive. That's okay, though, because I don't really like lantanas.

Most of the plants on your list will wither in the Summer heat. The Juniper won't but it often succumbs to disease due to high humidity. My advice to you is to drive around and look at the landscaping in some of the nice subdivisions and shopping areas. They hire professionals who know what works in your area and requires the minimal amount of maintenance for the least cost. It also helps to learn the names of different landscape plants grown here. I'm adding a link to a very helpful website that has a lot of information about Florida friendly landscape plants. It has plant lists for different areas and climates. If you try to grow plants for other zones and climates you are going to waste a lot of money and energy. SWFTMD Florida Friendly Plants

It's hard to believe what a puzzle this is. It should be easy. I got those plants from a site that lists Florida plants that resist frost, and now I'm hearing that they can't take the summer! Why would anyone bother creating a useless list?

I'll look at the website you suggested.

Actually many of those on your list are fine for winter in Florida, it could have been for people looking for Winter annuals. Some people still like to have some colorful flowers in the Winter here.

I have deep soil, but it's sandy. It is my understanding that we get a few mild freezes per year. I am nowhere near the ocean, thank God.

Ixorias would likely grow back if you leave them alone. They die back in a freeze but if they were established they will likely revive.

My first thoughts were camellias and azaleas. They do well in your area. There are different kinds that bloom at various times. Also firespikes and cupheas are plants that will burn or have their tops frozen, but come back strong in the summer in your growing zone.

You will note that I mention only flowering plants. There are many others that don't flower or flower very little. I like color in the garden and plants that attract butterflies and hummingbirds.

Good time of the year to start noticing which plants are thriving in your neighbors' yards.

Azaleas they are so pretty. When i live in Pensacola the azaleas were planted under all the oak trees and were a riot of blooms in the spring.

If you go with some azaleas, semi dwarfs bloom 6 months a year. I like cycads like coontie, but that might not fit with your tidy look. Some Ceratozamias laugh at frost and temps down to the mid teens without leaf damage.

Don’t be angry with the plants, lol. Just try and see what works and what doesn’t.

I haven't read all of the comments, but I'm going to suggest that you search for native plants for your gardening zone. A little research and a bit of effort finding them will give you plants that can take the weather, the soil, the bugs, the heat and whatever this Florida climate brings. I envy you a bit, because your north enough to plant some very pretty plants.

The lantana is probably fine, just died back. I'd be surprised if it was completely dead as it normally dies back for me (oly last three years, not this year, was it evergreen). Ixora might be fine too but I have less experience with them.

The only one on your list I would consider a possible groundcover in FL is juniper, most of the others here are cool season plants only. I'd recommend Homestead verbena (or Biloxi blue verbena), Dwarf Hybrid Morning Glory 'Blue My Mind' (not a true morning glory). Both of these are easy to propagate to fill an area. I'm also experimenting with Coreopsis 'Nana' which I have heard good things about. Mexican/False Heather and of course dwarf lantana varieties can also work (but these tend to be a little taller than the other two I mentioned). For dwarf lantana get the Chapel Hill series [I like Chapel Hill Yellow] or New Gold or similar, they are more sterile which means they flower more and fruit less. Also are more hardy.

I like Salvia sinaloensis and partridge berry (native) for shade groundcovers.

I really like dwarf yaupon, it's tough and environmentally friendly, but I would not consider it a groundcover except in certain sites as usually it's a tidy 3ft -5ft shrub depending on pruning regimen.

My favorite groundcover is actually Turkey Tangle Frogfruit but most gardeners wouldn't want that anywhere near their plantings LOL it's a bit of a native weed that grows extremely fast but it forms a dense 1 inch high mat and is a butterfly hostplant (and I don't have a backyard lawn so I don't have to worry about it taking over one).

My last advice is to pick a theme and also think in terms of what goes with your house. If you have a light-colored house maybe darker flowers are best but it really depends on the effect you're going for. If you want tropical and lush look for plants with larger leaves, brighter leaf color (bright green not gray-green), deciduous temperate plants like 'Hearts of Gold' redbud and Red Buckeye can match this, doesn't have to be just tropicals. If you want stately and formal, cooler greens and more monochromatic flower palette are good ideas and yaupon can serve as a Florida-friendly boxwood. Oh and lawn pesticides are a scam :P you mostly just need irrigation and mow them 1/2-1 inch higher than everyone else. My lawn looks better than everyone's on the street and 0 chemicals go into it. Having a tree helps too because most of FL has a shady turfgrass, St. Augustine grass.

Edit: also varieties of thyme and marjoram can work as groundcovers here. I grow mine in containers outside and they didn't get damage even from the 27 F frost

What about replacing some of them with natives? You could use firebush, native azaleas, native hollies, red salvia, porterweed, coonties ... check out the Association of Florida Native Nurseries site. Many times the nursery growers will sell plants at wholesale too. https://www.afnn.org/