A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 What Flowers in Florida

Okay, I know this is "La Florida" which has something to do with flowers :-). But what in the world can you plant that won't just wither and die in this heat? It seems if I put something down that can come back every year, it dies, cause one year it is a drought, the next a flood... and this year, it seems hotter than last year, but I know there has to be a solution. In Atlanta, we planted a lot of annuals, because it got cold enough to kill most things that were supposed to live from year to year, so they really became "annuals" anyway! But here in Starke, it seems it doesn't get that cold mostly. It is just the heat that seems to kill. And if that doesn't kill them, the drought or the flood, or the insects!! will.

Can you give me some suggestions?

Jonnie

One suggestion would be Cannas...they love the heat and they do well with or without a lot of water, although they perform best with a lot.

wonder if iris would do well there. I never water mine and most of them are in full sun all day.

Jonnie,

Here's an interesting link that answers the question "What Blooms In Florida." . I've lived here over 35 years, and still get dismayed over the difficulty in having nice landscaping. We just moved into a new home, and I'm going through the same thing. New plants are dying b/c of lack of water - and we're on a water restriction (only 2X/wk).

Bouganvillas come to mind as a hearty heat resistant plant. Magnolias and hibiscus do very well here, too. Bottle brush is what I have in my backyard (beautiful brush-shaped fusia blooms) and that seems to be doing well. Check out the link and let me know if it helps!

Click on "Pekemom's Gallery" below my sig, too, for some pics of a local golf course that shows you what's possible on Florida's Nature Coast, the NW part of the state.

Welcome to Florida!!

Jonnie, another good reference website for growing things in Florida is Floridata.

Have you tried doing a Search here at Garden Helper using the Search option at the top of each page? You may find some good information there, too. Here is a link for a search I did for Florida.

You could grow gardenia, poinsettia, orchids, passionflower vine, daylilies, elephant ear, caladium, kumquat, orange, lemon, grapefruit, mango, spider lilies, hibiscus, lantana, lily of the nile. Of course you would have to water during drought times.

There's lots of things that grow well in Florida. I'm not too far from you and have a wide variety of plants growing.

Here is some of what does well for me.

Angel Trumpets
Datura
Four o'clocks
Beautyberry bush
Banana trees
Rattlebox
Mexican petunias
lillies
roses
Hairy Cluster Vine
Cardinal Vine
Yucca
Aloe
Lantana
Cannas
Periwinkle
Mondo Grass
Ginger
Portulaca
Wildflower mixtures

Theres too much to list that will grow down here. Check with your local nursery(not walmart) and see what they have. They are always a good place to find what grows well in your area. They are very knowledgeable about those plants too.

Good Luck!

G~Mom

i like Caesalpinia

Cool. I just figured out how to make the blue words work :-). Those are pretty.

Well, as soon as my leg heals, I will get back to gardening. I have cellulitis?? I don't know if that is spelled right. And am antibiotics. My leg is all red and swollen, so no digging for me. But I am trying to save these pictures and names for later. Thanks!

Hope you feel better soon,Jonnie

On that list G~Mom sent the portulaca is a great one especially for borders or something. I plant it near my bulkhead and when there is a storm salt water just dumps on it and it doesn't even care, just grows beautifully. It is also drought tolerant and will grow in almost any soil.