Best Drought Tolerant Perennials
In Texas

This week we will discuss the best drought tolerant perennials to plant in Texas. For the past six or seven years at least, we've been told we are in a bad drought. We don't get much rain and we are in hot, south central Texas. We are pretty much in a drought all of the time.

So let's talk about keeping our gardens vibrant and beautiful, even when the Texas sun is blazing and rain is scarce. You know what I mean, those scorching summers when everything seems to wilt except the cacti!

But don't worry, you don't have to resign yourself to a brown, crispy landscape. There are plenty of gorgeous, drought-tolerant perennials that will thrive in our dry, hot climate. These tough plants are built to withstand the heat and come back year after year, adding beauty and life to your yard with minimal watering.

We're going to explore the Best Drought Tolerant Perennials to plant in Texas, perfect for those of us who love a beautiful garden but don't have the time or resources for constant watering. These are plants that love heat and don't require a lot of water.

Think of it: Lots of plants that will come back year after year looking good in the heat with little rainfall. Sounds pretty good, right? Let's dive in!

Best Drought Tolerant Perennials - 5/5-5/11/25

Monday, May 5, 2025

This is one of the trees that had ripe peaches on it yesterday.

Good morning and welcome to Monday. It is 6am and 68°. It was supposed to be raining now but it is not.

This morning, David has a doctor's appointment and then it is back to the Atascosa County Tax office to fill out more paperwork to get our tax exemption. David has been emailing someone over there and this should be our last visit to get the property exemption due to our bees as well as our orchard.

The bee hives are in our orchard because it is fenced. Behind the fence are many wildflowers and other flowers planted for the bees to eat.

The rain started around 8:10am. I have to look at the rain gauge but I am in Fulfillment right now. It is almost 6pm. Everyone left but me. David had a good doctor visit and I will see this new doctor next Monday because she said she might be able to help me with a problem I am having...

We went over to Atascosa Tax office and filled out some more papers. I hope we get our tax exemption. We got back and I filled and mailed out orders, waiting to hear from the accountant. He sent the pay stubs so I wrote checks.

A friend came to put the Starlink dish up on the roof. He did some other things for the internet with Matt while I finished up payroll. It is working great and now that it is up on the roof, we are getting a lot better coverage. We still have to get it hard wired in the store.

Well, the accountant never showed up so another day goes by without us getting our taxes filed...He never called.

I took the mail in to David at 4:50pm and there was a defrosted chicken sitting on the island. I chopped up some vegetables and put it all into the oven. It should be ready close to 7pm.

Matt took care of the animals and got them all put away because we are supposed to be having rain right now. There are some clouds but I will be surprised if it rains. The humidity is ugly right now.

I pulled all of my orders and I will start mailing them out tomorrow. It seems like David said we have to go somewhere tomorrow but I cannot remember where or when.

Well, 6pm came and went with no rain. The rain gauge says that we got a quarter of an inch this morning so that is good news.

My chicken will be done soon and Martha Stewart is on again this evening so that will be entertaining.

Best Drought Tolerant Perennials

This is Pink Sunday Salvia. Isn't it pretty?

First up, let's talk about flowers--the best drought tolerant perennials! These beauties will add a splash of color to your garden and attract pollinators like bees and butterflies.

Lantana: This vibrant plant comes in a variety of colors and blooms all summer long. It's a real workhorse in the Texas heat. We sold some lantana plants last year. We have none this year.

Salvia: Another excellent choice for attracting pollinators, Salvia comes in shades of red, purple, and blue. We sell several salvia varieties. We sell four varieties of salvia.

Coneflower: These cheerful daisy lookalikes are tough as nails and come in a variety of colors, including purple, pink, and white. We sell coneflower seeds here.

Blackfoot Daisy: A Texas native, this charming daisy is incredibly drought-tolerant and produces masses of small white flowers. We do not sell the seeds for this daisy.

Damianita: This low-growing groundcover is covered in bright yellow flowers in the spring and requires very little water. We do not carry the seeds.

Marigold: Marigolds are perfect for adding color to flower beds, containers, or borders, and marigolds are known to repel pests in the garden, making them an excellent companion plant. Marigold seeds can be found here.

Penstemon: A Mexican native wildflower, Penstemon thrives in warm climates, but will appreciate a small amount of shade in the hottest regions. The seeds can be found here.

Coreopsis: Coreopsis is a tremendously resilient wildflower that can grow in just about any region and most soil conditions. It is a very generous bloomer, a staple of virtually any meadow garden. The seeds can be found here.

We have agave, aloe, and snake plants for sale.

Now, let's add some interesting textures to your garden with these drought-tolerant perennials.

Yucca: This dramatic plant adds a touch of the desert to your landscape with its spiky foliage. We do not have yucca plants.

Agaves: Another striking succulent, Agaves come in various shapes and sizes, adding a unique architectural element to your garden. We actually sell some agave plants. We have a few left. However, we do not ship them so you will have to visit our farm to get one.

Sotol: This Texas native boasts long, slender leaves and is incredibly drought-tolerant. We do not carry this plant.

Sweet Potato Vine: Last year, we sold a lot of sweet potato vine plants. We have a few this year that I rooted. You will have to visit the farm to purchase them.

Aloe Vera: We have a few aloe vera plants on the farm. We do not ship plants so you will have to visit the farm to purchase them.

Creeping Jenny: Last year, we sold this plant. This year, we do not have any.

Honeysuckle: Occasionally, I root some of this for sale. Right now, we do not have any for sale.

This is one of the sweet potato vine flowers from last year.

Tuesday, May 6, 2025

Good morning. We are experiencing sprinkles right now so that is good. It is amazing that we still have internet. With Hughes, every time it rained, we had no internet but today, we can continue to work and receive orders.

If you waited to get our coffee on sale, you waited too long. The sale is over and the coffee is gone.

Our dogs will be getting groomed today. Tomorrow, we celebrate Trump's first birthday. He is huge but he still thinks he is a tiny puppy. He sure loves it when I am around. At least I have one friend!

Trump shortly after we found him out back last July. He was so tiny!

Comfort Commander sent one of their technicians to check on our home air conditioner unit, which is just fine. This is a once a year check that comes with getting a $10,000 unit, which we got a few years ago. You would think for that much they would come over once a month.

David and I left to take the three dogs to the groomer at 10:15am. The appointment was for 10:45am. Now you would think they would be done in two hours or so. We left here at 6pm because they would not answer the phone.

By 6:15pm, they finally called and said the dogs were ready. By then, we were five minutes away. She still had five other dogs in there when we went to pick up our tired, hungry dogs. They were so happy to see us; they probably thought we had abandoned them forever.

Best Drought Tolerant Perennials

This is the creeping zinnia. It is new to us this year and is an excellent ground cover that looks like little Black Eyed Susans.

Some groundcovers make some of the best drought tolerant perennials that are essential for preventing soil erosion and suppressing weeds, especially in dry climates.

Texas Betony: This spreading perennial has beautiful purple flowers and is excellent for erosion control. We do not carry this plant.

Frogfruit: A low-growing groundcover with small white flowers, Frogfruit is perfect for filling in bare spots and preventing weeds. We do not carry this plant.

Creeping Zinnia: These special zinnias are a good ground cover. The flowers look like mini Black Eyed Susans. We sell the seeds for this ground cover.

Wednesday, May 7, 2025

Trump's one year happy birthday photo. Isn't he cute?

Happy Birthday to our little Trump! Last July 2, we found a four pound, starving puppy back by our chickens. The vet said he was about eight weeks old so this is the day we have chosen to be his birthday. Trump has grown into a 75 pound Louisiana Catahoula. He is so pretty and very active!

We're taking Trump to the groomer yesterday in this photo.

I got up early and made a delicious German pancake. I think it came out just perfect.

This German pancake that I made from scratch this morning came out perfect!

I am serving it with the peach compote that I made late last night. I will say that it was delicious!

I heated my peach compote this morning to go on the German pancake.

A serving of German pancake covered in peaches. So good!

Some new workers from another farm are coming here this morning to mow. David and Matt are going out to get all of our equipment out. I hope they don't break anything. It is 67° right now at 7am. It will get up to 90° and be miserably humid again.

Two out of the three workers showed up. One left after two hours, leaving one man to do the work of three. These workers were recommended by another farm out here saying they do excellent work. Not showing up and leaving early are not exactly excellent traits of workers...It is truly hard to find good help out here.

The second guy left at 1pm saying he will be back to finish tomorrow.

The accountant called and said maybe we will do the taxes on Thursday or Friday but that it is no big deal. Actually, yes, it is a big deal because tax day was April 15 and it is now May 7. I don't like to be late for anything so this is a huge deal to me.

I spent the afternoon adding new articles to the David's Garden Seeds website and setting up social media posts. My orders were done and we had no customers whatsoever.

Trump celebrated his birthday this afternoon by throwing up in the den so I got to clean it up.

David decided he wanted enchiladas for dinner so I made two pans--a large beef and a smaller pan of cheese enchiladas. They were quite delicious, one of my best efforts.

Best Drought Tolerant Perennials

Ornamental grasses add movement and texture to your garden, swaying gracefully in the breeze.

Lindheimer's Muhly: This Texas native grass produces beautiful pink plumes in the fall. We do not carry this.

Switchgrass: Another tough native grass, Switchgrass comes in various heights and colors. We do not carry this.

This is Vera lavender. We sell the seeds.

Now let's mention the herbs that do well.

Oregano: Oregano is a classic herb known for its robust, slightly spicy flavor, commonly used in Italian, Mediterranean, and Mexican cuisine.

Lavender: We carry the original species of English lavender, highly prized for its amazing fragrance and medicinal properties.

Catmint: Catmint seeds produce lavender blooms on spiky stems that are good for container gardening as well as the perennial garden. The leaves are a soft, crinkled, gray-green in color on a compact, mounding plant. Medicinally, you can make tea for sleeplessness or nervous tension.

Rosemary: Rosemary is a hardy herb that thrives in full sun and is perfect for container or garden planting.

Common Sage: Sage is a popular herb known for its savory, slightly peppery flavor. This is what we use to roast turkey and other poultry. Do not serve sage leaves raw. They must be cooked in order to be eaten.

Our herb seeds can be found here.

Thursday, May 8, 2025

Good morning. It is sunny and hot here today. We had one customer this morning. It is noon and three workers showed up today to cut the lawn. They are leaving now.

A new pope has been chosen although we do not know who yet. White smoke has appeared and there is a huge crowd waiting at the Vatican for him. I watched. There was a lot of colorful pageantry at the Vatican while everyone waited.

They chose an American pope for the first time ever...

We had a second customer. That hasn't happened in a while.

Sometime around 2:30pm, the heavens opened and there was thunder and rain--for about five minutes.

Matt just came and told me that another storm is heading our way in just a few minutes. Alexa says we won't get rain until 7pm.

Alexa says we have a thunderstorm watch until 11pm today.

It started sprinkling again around 4pm for a short while and then sometime before 7pm. Now it is 8:45pm and it has been raining for a while. I hope it moves the rain gauge. David is still out there working. I came in and cleaned up the kitchen and folded some laundry.

Best Drought Tolerant Perennials

This is the Four O'Clock Bicolor Mix. We have the seeds.

Enjoy the sweet scents of these drought-tolerant perennials in the cool evening air.

Four O'Clocks: These fragrant flowers open in the late afternoon and evening, releasing a sweet perfume. We sell them in a variety of colors here.

Friday, May 9, 2025

The moringa is coming back after this beautiful 7 foot tree froze in March. Someone told us it would come back but I was genuinely surprised.

Good morning. The rain is over and we had a beautiful sunrise. I was busy cooking sausage and eggs so I did not snap a photo. The rain gauge shows just under one quarter inch so not much but better than nothing. Everything is still so green and pretty. It is 62° right now and should get up to 84° today. I still have more planting to do.

I woke up starving so I made a pot of coffee and scrambled some eggs with breakfast sausage. I also put a roast in the crockpot for tonight. I will cook it on slow all day long. Hopefully, David won't interfere and put it on high. Right now, he is still sleeping and the dogs are outside, probably getting muddy.

I just let the dogs in to eat breakfast. The back gate is wide open just like it was yesterday morning. Those outdoor workers don't know how to close gates and leave things the way they found them. I can't believe it took them two days to cut our property. We were told they were very good. Ha!

The scarlet runner beans are climbing high!

A closeup of the scarlet runner beans to show you the striking red flowers.

It is now 2pm and all of the orders are done for the day. I walked over to Production and something in the garden outside of the store caught my eye--our first zinnia of the season--a hot pink one.

My first zinnia of the season! Isn't it so pretty?

I picked out some sweet corn to plant and Matt got it planted. I chose Peaches and Cream again and Bantam corn which I have never grown. The Bantam was a Great Depression favorite so I thought I would give it a try. I love corn. It's my favorite veggie.

We had one family come in this morning and get some seeds. Each child picked out one pack.

I made a delicious egg casserole for lunch. It was so good...

The afternoon dragged by. I scheduled more social media posts. I also updated the websites.

Did you know that you have to pay for the privilege of being a part of the Better Business Bureau? The BBB does not mean that your business is something special. It means that you can afford to keep paying them. We decided to stop paying them today. We are in a bit of an economic turn down just like everyone else right now. We are cutting back where we can. We have also made other cuts that are not necessary.

The flies are thick this year. I opened some Quik Strike fly baits by the goat pen and the flies started swarming it. A bunch were dead by the time I left the goat pen. That is awesome. However, I cannot put it inside the pen as it is not good for the goats. I am interested to see how many it will kill overnight. I heard about it on a goat forum. The flies are so bothersome.

It rained a tiny bit this evening, not enough to move the needle.

Best Drought Tolerant Perennials

Bee balm attracts bees and you need those little pollinators in your garden.

These plants will attract birds, butterflies, and other beneficial wildlife to your yard.

Turks Cap: This hummingbird favorite produces bright red flowers throughout the summer. We do not carry these.

Passionflower: Another hummingbird magnet, Passionflower has unique, intricate flowers. We do not carry these.

These plants are perfect for those who want a beautiful garden without a lot of fuss. We do not carry these.

Cenizo: This silvery shrub is incredibly drought-tolerant and requires very little care. We do not carry these.

Rock Rose: This tough plant produces beautiful pink or yellow flowers and can handle even the harshest conditions. We do not carry these.

Some other flowers that will do well include:

Bee Balm

Blanketflower

Yarrow

Asclepias

Asters

Rudbeckia

Dianthus

The above seeds can all be found on the David's Garden Seeds® website under Flowers.

Saturday, May 10, 2025

Here it is Saturday morning. I have had coffee and eggs and now I have to go outside and take care of the animals. I wish I did not have to work every single Saturday. I hate not having one day a week where I can do what I want to do, like clean my house. We can no longer afford to have the housekeeper come in once every two weeks and by 2pm, I will be tired and won't want to do a thing.

I got a lot of orders closed and mailed because we had no customers until 15 minutes before we closed. At 1:45pm, a family came to shop. They left at exactly 2pm but the mailman did not make it.

I let the family out of the closed gate and then David and I left to go to some gardening place not far away that he wanted to see. While we were there, some heavy rain started in Big Foot. It rained all the way home and got very light by the time we reached home. The mailman was at the stop right before our house. I jumped out of the truck, grabbed the mailbag and took it to the fence since the gate was closed. In turn we got our property tax bill without a tax exemption that we were told we would get. Fun times.

Then David had a man come over for business.

Matt got here with the goat food so I could feed the goats something besides hay this evening. Then he drove down to Farm to Familia to get us some Filipino food. We watched a John Grisham movie, Rainmaker. It was very good but so are all of his books.

In the middle of the movie, somewhere around 9pm, our power shut off. Of course, about 60 seconds later, our generator kicked on and we watched the rest of the movie. The real power was not restored until after midnight. Supposedly, it was because of an accident but according to Matt, the accident had taken place when he was on his way back with the food around 7pm or so, unless there was a second bad accident on the same road two hours later...It was very strange.

Best Drought Tolerant Perennials

The Mistflower is a new seed variety for us this spring.

Here are a few more best drought tolerant perennials for Texas and other hot and dry areas:

Mistflower: This lovely perennial has fuzzy blue flowers and attracts butterflies.

Mealy Blue Sage: This tough plant has silvery foliage and blue flowers.

Autumn Sage: This vibrant sage has red flowers and blooms from summer to fall. We do not carry this.

Texas Ranger: This large shrub has purple flowers and is incredibly drought-tolerant. We do not carry this.

Crossvine: This fast-growing vine has trumpet-shaped flowers and is perfect for covering fences or trellises. We do not carry this.

Flame Acanthus: This striking plant has orange flowers and attracts hummingbirds. We do not carry this.

Sunday, May 11, 2025

Good morning. Happy Mother's Day to all of the gardening moms out there. The air felt so nice outside at 7am when I went out to feed the fish and animals. I loved it. If I had extra time, I would have planted out my two grow towers in my plant area because it would have been the perfect temperature.

We went to church and our son, Matt, the only one out of four who speaks to us came to sit with me. He actually brought me a gift bag with some things last night and that was so sweet. I was happy to see him at church.

David and I came home and ate leftovers. Now he is in the process of smoking some beef jerky that he is making.

The weather is hot and sunny so I don't want to go plant now. I think I will just chill out for a little while since I did not get to rest at all yesterday. I did not even get to fold laundry with all that was going on.

Best Drought Tolerant Perennials

This is the Dianthus Chabaud Marie.

Remember, when planting your Best Drought Tolerant Perennials in Texas, it's important to choose plants that are appropriate for your specific region and soil type.

Consider factors like sunlight exposure and drainage when selecting your plants.

With a little planning, you can create a beautiful, thriving garden that can withstand the Texas heat and drought.

Plants that don't require a lot of water are perfect for our climate.

And because they are perennials, they will come back year after year, providing beauty and enjoyment for years to come.

So, embrace the heat and create a stunning, low-maintenance garden with the Best Drought Tolerant Perennials in Texas.

You'll be amazed at how these plants that love heat can thrive even in the driest conditions.

Remember, a beautiful garden doesn't have to be a high-maintenance chore.

With the right plants, you can enjoy a vibrant landscape with minimal effort.

So, get out there and start planting!

Your Texas garden will thank you for it.

And you'll be able to enjoy the beauty of your drought-tolerant perennials year after year.

Happy gardening!

Return from Best Drought Tolerant Perennials to Our Sixth Year

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