The dry and hot summers, which have been increasing in recent years, pose a particular challenge for many flowers. However, there are several that do well in a sunny location.
In a nutshell
- need at least six to seven hours of sunshine a day
- are sensitive to waterlogging
- well suited for perennial beds, natural plantings, rock and steppe gardens
- Onion flowers also love dry, sunny places
Table of contents
- True survivors
- Sun loving flowers from A – B
- Sunny location flowers with G
- J-K
- M – O
- Dry site flowers with P
- R – W
- frequently asked Questions
True survivors
Flowers in dry and sunny locations are true survivors. They need at least six to seven hours of sun a day. There should be no shading, particularly during midday. They also love dry soil. These flowers are very sensitive to waterlogging, especially in winter. The soil must therefore be well drained. Splitting can be worked in to improve it. Below is a small list of such enduring flowers.
Sun loving flowers from A – B
Argentine verbena (Verbena bonariensis)
This beautiful flower originally comes from South America. she can im perennial bed or an open space in tuffs of four plants find their place.
- Growth: sparse, upright, clump-forming
- Growth height: 80 to 120 cm
- Flowering period: July to October
- Flowers: Star-shaped individual flowers in umbels, blue-violet
- Leaves: Basal leaf rosette, mid-green, pointed, lanceolate, serrate leaf margin
- Soil: well-drained, normal garden soil
A notice: Verbena is one good cut flower. In order for it to last a long time, it is cut before it is fully open.
Branchless grass lily (Anthericum liliago)
This native plant exudes a special exotic charm. The wildflower comes into its own when planted individually or in small groups of three to five plants.
- Growth: upright stems, arching hanging leaves
- Growth height: 20 to 50 cm
- Flowering period: May to June
- Flowers: simple, star-shaped single flowers in racemes, white
- Leaves: green, pointed, entire, grass-like
- Soil: well-drained, normal garden soil
blue diamond (Perovskia atriplicifolia)
The decorative subshrub sets magnificent accents in every perennial border, especially in the back of the border. He is hardy to -20 degrees and needs cut back in spring.
- Growth: loose, upright, broad bushy
- Growth height: 50 to 100 cm
- Flowering time: July to the end of October
- Flowers: violet-blue, spike-shaped
- Leaf: bipinnate, aromatic fragrant, silver-grey, felted
- Soil: well-drained, normal garden soil
Sunny location flowers with G
common yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
This native perennial is widespread throughout Europe. The edible wild plant is suitable for bouquets and as a dried flower.
- Growth: forming runners, upright
- Growth height: 20 to 60 cm
- Flowering period: June to October
- Flowers: many white individual flowers, cymes
- Leaves: fragrant, green, lanceolate, pinnate
- Soil: neutral to slightly acidic, stony to clayey, rich in humus and nutrients
Goldhair Aster (Aster linosyris)
The domestic and hardy perennial is very easy to care for and quite bee-friendly. It always orients its leaves towards the sun.
- Growth: clump-forming, upright, leafy stems
- Growth height: 40 to 60 cm
- Flowering period: July to October
- Flowers: dense yellow tubular flowers, in dense cups
- Leaf: green, linear, narrow, thin, pointed, entire
- Soil: permeable, rich in humus, pH-neutral garden soil
Thrift 'Nifty Thrifty' (Armeria maritima)
Thrifts are at home on the native sea coasts. However, the carnation "Nifty Thrifty" is a cultivar and is also known as sea gras carnation or rock garden carnation.
- Habit: upright flower stalks, hemispherical, herbaceous, cushion-like
- Growth height: 15 to 20 cm
- Flowering time: May until July
- Flower: ball-shaped, simple, pink
- Leaves: evergreen, linear, grass-like, entire, pointed
- Soil: permeable, sandy, mineral
J-K
junker lily (Asphodelina lutea)
The flower, which originated in the Mediterranean region, is now native to all of Europe. Especially in steppe gardens or gravel gardens, small colonies form in a very short time through self-propagation.
- Habit: clump-forming, upright flower stalks, basal tuft of leaves
- Growth height: 50 to 80 cm
- Flowering period: May to June
- Flowers: Star-shaped individual flowers in spikes, golden yellow
- Leaves: evergreen, smooth, tapering to a point, linear, with entire margins
- Soil: well drained, nutritious, moderately dry
blanket flower (Gaillardia aristata)
This delightful flower blooms relentlessly throughout the summer and into the fall provides food for many insects. The hardy perennial is well suited for planting in cottage gardens and natural and rock gardens.
- Growth: bushy, upright, dense
- Growth height: 15 to 75 cm
- Flowering period: July to October
- Flowers: Terminal individual flowers, up to 10 cm in diameter, red, orange, yellow and multicolored
- Leaves: Green, entire, lanceolate, toothed, arranged in a rosette
- Soil: sandy to gravelly, likes lime, rich in humus and nutrients
globe thistle (Echinops ritro)
The flower balls magically attract insects and butterflies. The beautifully formed seed pods are well suited for drying. The flower is ideal for a dry and sunny spot in your garden.
- Habit: basal leaf rosette, clump-forming, upright flower stalks
- Growth height: 60 to 100 cm
- Flowering period: August to September
- Flower: ball-shaped, terminal, light violet-blue
- Leaf: Entire margins, coarse, indented margins, pinnate
- Soil: well drained, poor in nutrients
M – O
Girl's Eye "Moonbeam" (Coreopsis verticillata)
Native to the USA, this extremely hardy perennial is very easy to care for. Regularly cleaning out the withered parts promotes lush flowering.
- Growth: clump-forming, cushion-like, upright, bushy
- Growth height: 25 to 30 cm
- Flowering period: June to September
- Flowers: simple, radiating, pale yellow, darker center
- Leaves: light green, narrow, with entire margins, oblong, together in whorls
- Soil: rich in nutrients, well drained, loamy to sandy
Macedonian scabious "Red Knight" (Knautia macedonica)
The perennial, hardy scabious is an absolute perpetual bloomer in the summery garden and magically attracts butterflies. It is particularly suitable for natural plantings, cottage gardens and steppe plantings.
- Growth: clump-forming, bushy, easily falling apart
- Growth height: 70 to 80 cm
- Flowering period: July to September
- Flowers: spherical, simple, dense inflorescences of individual flowers, deep red
- Leaves: Light green, finely hairy, entire to serrated, pinnate to lanceolate
- Soil: permeable, neutral to calcareous
Oriental poppy "Turkish Louis" (Oriental Papaver)
The poppy is excellent as a cut flower and is a excellent bee pasture. After flowering at the end of June, the perennial is cut off close to the ground so that it can sprout again in autumn.
- Growth: broad, sprawling, upright, clump-forming, arching
- Growth height: 60 to 80 cm
- Flowering period: May to June
- Flower: simple, bowl-shaped, strongly slit and fringed edges, red, black eye
- Leaves: evergreen, lanceolate, finely hairy, incised
- Soil: permeable, rich in nutrients
Dry site flowers with P
splendor candle (Gaura lindheimeri)
The summer perennial from southern North America is also known as prairie candle. Each individual flower only opens for one day.
- Growth: clump-forming, bushy
- Growth height: 80 to 100 cm
- Flowering period: June to October
- Flowers: simple, bowl-shaped, hanging in loose racemes, white, pink
- Leaves: grey-green, glabrous, lanceolate, notched
- Soil: poor in nutrients, well drained, normal garden soil
A notice: The prairie candle needs to be cut back in the fall. In case of frost, winter protection is necessary.
Purple-flowered mullein (Verbascum phoeniceum)
The biennial mullein has its origins in Eastern Europe. It is particularly suitable for natural plantings and gravel gardens. The flower tolerates a dry and sunny location very well.
- Growth: upright, forming clumps
- Growth height: 50 to 70 cm
- Flowering period: May to June
- Flowers: Simple individual flowers in panicles, red-violet to violet
- Leaves: evergreen, leaf rosette, entire, ovate, pointed, dark green
- Soil: rich in humus, loamy to sandy
Pyrenean Aster "Lutetia" (Aster pyrenaeus)
This aster is particularly suitable for planting along the edges of perennial beds. It is very insect friendly and also a long lasting cut flower.
- Habit: clump-forming, hemispherical, upright to arching overhanging
- Growth height: 40 to 60 cm
- Flowering period: July to September
- Flowers: daisy flowers, narrow long ray florets, light purple
- Leaf: medium green, lanceolate
- Soil: rich in humus and nutrients, permeable, normal garden soil, well adaptable
R – W
Giant steppe candle (Eremurus robustus)
The plant, which originates from western and central Asia, grows particularly well in gravel beds or steppe plantations. To ensure that the flower stays in the vase for a long time, the cut is made as soon as the bottom flowers have opened.
- Habit: clump-forming, upright flower stalks, arching hanging leaves
- Growth height: 50 to 250 cm
- Flowering period: June to July
- Flowers: Individual flowers in racemes, light pink, yellowish in the centre
- Leaves: grey-green, linear, narrow, tapering to a point
- Soil: deep, nutrient-rich, permeable, pH 5.5 to 5.9
Red spur flower (Centranthus ruber)
The extreme hardy perennial is originally native to Southern Europe, Northwest Africa and Asia Minor. The root contains medicinally effective iridoids.
- Growth: bushy, clump-forming
- Growth height: 60 to 80 cm
- Flowering time: April to October
- Flowers: small individual flowers in panicles, cymes, red
- Leaves: green, entire, ovate to lanceolate
- Soil: alkaline to neutral, sandy to stony, poor in nutrients and humus
Wollziest (Stachys byzantina)
The Wollziest, which originates from East Asia and the Caucasus, was already known as a medicinal plant in the Middle Ages. It is in combination with Ivy in the rock garden or a real eye-catcher in open spaces.
- Growth: creeping, carpet-like, spreading
- Growth height: 30 to 40 cm
- Flowering period: July to August
- Flowers: simple, in panicles, violet-pink
- Leaves: Grey-white to silvery, woolly hairs, felt-like, pointed, entire, broadly lanceolate
- Soil: poor in nutrients, permeable
A notice: The hairy leaves protect the plant from drying out. A pruning is necessary in autumn.
frequently asked Questions
Drought promotes the formation of a fine root system, so that the plant can fetch water from deeper layers of the earth. With frequent watering, the plant simply stops root growth. Therefore, plants should not be watered regularly, but rather thoroughly. However, regular watering is necessary in the first year after planting. Later only in the case of prolonged drought.
It is not always easy to recognize flowers for sunny and dry locations by their appearance. Typical can be firm, thick and sometimes hairy leaves. The foliage can also often be small and grey-leaved.
It just lends itself to "sun worshipers" along with planting onion flowers. They also love sun and dry soil. Especially in winter it must be permeable to prevent rotting. Onion flowers can not only fill in gaps and set beautiful accents, but also extend the flowering period. Tulips are ideal as heralds of spring and ornamental onions to close gaps between flowers from June.
