How to Design a Drought Tolerant Garden

Are you tired of seeing your garden wilt under the harsh summer sun? Perhaps you’ve realised the environmental impact of wasting water, or you’re building a garden that’s resilient in the face of climate change?

In this article, we’ll navigate through the concept of drought-tolerant gardens, and how to design one. We’ll also list some of the best native Australian and exotic plants that are drought tolerant, from ground covers to climbers, shrubs and trees.

By the end of this piece, you should be well-equipped to create a vibrant, resilient garden that thrives even under challenging conditions.

The Benefits of Drought Tolerant Gardens

Environmental Benefits

Drought tolerant gardens conserve water (no, duh). The main way they do this is by using plants that require less water. These gardens can survive dry spells, and help to sustain our planet’s precious water resources.

All the while, these gardens support local biodiversity, providing habitats and food sources for native fauna.

Economic Benefits

Reduced water usage means reduced water bills. By designing a garden that thrives on less water, you can save significantly on irrigation costs. Plus, drought-tolerant plants often require less maintenance, saving you time and effort as well.

Aesthetic Advantages

During water restrictions, drought-tolerant gardens can be more beautiful and diverse than traditional gardens which may fail during a heatwave. With careful plant selection and design, you can achieve a visually stunning landscape that remains vibrant throughout the year.

Understanding Your Space

Before you start designing your drought-tolerant garden, it’s important to understand your local climate and how it impacts plant selection. Plants adapted to the conditions of your local climate will naturally perform better and require less maintenance.

Microclimates within your garden – areas that are hotter, cooler, windier or more sheltered than others – also affect plant growth. Understanding these microclimates can help you place plants where they’ll thrive best.

Other factors to consider include sunlight, aspect, soil structure and texture, soil profile depth, and nutritional availability. These elements each play a role in determining which plants will do well in your garden.

Clays and loamy soils are better at holding water than sandy soils, provided that the water can penetrate into the profile and the soil hasn’t become compacted.

Key Principles of Designing a Drought Tolerant Garden

Soil Preparation

Good soil is the foundation of any successful garden. For a drought tolerant garden, you’ll want soil that retains moisture but drains well. Adding organic matter can improve both water retention and drainage.

Sandy soils can become hydrophobic which is the opposite of what you want in a drought-tolerant garden. Organic matter can help, but can also make the problem worse as the plant waxes coat the large sandy particles, preventing water entering the root zone.

Ammending with a quality hydrogel like Terracottem or a kaolin clay like Soil Solver during the initial landscaping will help avoid this issue. Meanwhile, clay-dominant soils can become compacted, which can be amended with a mix of gypsum and organic matter.

When rain finally does come, drought-tolerant plants may not appreciate consistent wet feet so amending with gypsum and organic matter can help improve drainage. Continue to add organic matter to improve the texture so it becomes more loamy over time.

Plant Selection

Choosing drought resistant plants is key. Look for plants with deep roots, silver or grey foliage, and those native to dry climates. Always check plant labels of cultivars for information about water needs and preferred growing conditions.

We’ll delve into some of the best drought tolerant plants later in this article.

Efficient Irrigation

Even drought-tolerant gardens need some water. The goal is to water deeply but infrequently, encouraging plants to develop deep root systems. Drip irrigation systems, soaker hoses, and watering in the early morning or late evening can make your watering more efficient.

If you’re foregoing reticulated irrigation altogether, (and even if you’re not,) consider capturing rainwater. This can be done with a water tank as well as directing the flow of water into a rain garden or bioswale instead of into a drain that leads to the water treatment plant or directly out to sea.

Mulching

Mulching is a critical aspect of maintaining a drought-tolerant garden. It serves as a protective layer over the soil, reducing evaporation and thus conserving soil moisture. On top of this, mulch helps to moderate soil temperatures, suppress weed growth, and improve soil structure and fertility as it decomposes.

When selecting a mulch, consider chunky bark chips without fine particles to avoid creating an impenetrable barrier for water, which can move more easily through the large gaps of chunky mulch.

Remember to apply your mulch evenly every couple of years or so, and avoid piling it up against the stems of plants, as this can cause them to rot.

Living mulches, or ground covers, are an effective alternative to regular mulches and can provide the same benefits, with the added benefits of flowering and feeding fauna.

Popular Drought-Tolerant Plants

Now let’s explore some of the most popular drought-tolerant plants, including native Australian and exotic options.

While these plants are more resistant to dry conditions than most plants, it’s important to note all plants still require some amount of water to thrive.

Also, bear in mind that the list below is general – specific cultivars may perform differently than you’d expect based on the genus or species information. Always check the plant label for specific growing requirements.

Native drought tolerant plants:

• Westringia: These hardy shrubs feature delicate flowers and are known for their tolerance to coastal conditions and drought.
• Correa: Known for their colourful, bell-shaped flowers, correas are low-maintenance and drought-tolerant.
• Callistemon: Also known as bottlebrushes, these plants are popular for their vibrant, brush-like flowers and resilience.
• Grevillea: These versatile natives offer a wide range of flower shapes and colours, and most varieties are drought-tolerant.
• Lomandra: With their grass-like appearance, lomandras are robust, adaptable and require little watering once established.
• Dianella: These strappy-leafed plants are low-maintenance, drought-tolerant and offer beautiful flowers and berries.
• Lilly pilly: An Australian classic, lilly pillies are known for their lush foliage, colourful new growth, and edible berries.
• Pennisetum: Also known as fountain grasses, these ornamental grasses are drought-tolerant and provide year-round interest.
• Carpobrotus: Ideal for ground cover, these succulent-like plants are extremely hardy and feature vibrant daisy-like flowers.
• Myoporum: These fast-growing ground covers are hardy, drought-tolerant, and produce a profusion of small, starry flowers.
• Eremophila: Also known as emu bushes, these hardy plants are incredibly drought-tolerant and boast beautiful tubular flowers.
• Pandorea: These vigorous climbers offer glossy leaves and showy flowers, and they’re surprisingly drought-tolerant once established.
• Hardenbergia: Known as the coral pea, these climbers or trailing ground covers offer stunning purple flowers and are drought-resistant.

Exotic drought tolerant plants:

• Agapanthus: These summer-flowering plants are tough, low-maintenance, and offer striking globes of blue or white flowers.
• Dietes: With their iris family flowers, dietes are hardy, adaptable, and handle dry spells well.
• Aloes: Known for their succulent leaves and tall, torch-like flowers, aloes are incredibly drought-tolerant.
• Phormium: Also known as New Zealand flax, these plants offer dramatic, strappy leaves and are highly drought-tolerant.
• Liriope: These evergreen perennials are robust, low-maintenance and drought-tolerant.
• Viburnum: Offering beautiful flowers and often fragrant, viburnums are adaptable and can handle dry periods.
• Photinia: Known for their vibrant new growth, these shrubs are hardy and relatively drought-tolerant.
• Murraya: These evergreen shrubs offer lush foliage, fragrant flowers and are reasonably drought-tolerant.
• Metrosideros: Also known as New Zealand Christmas bush, these plants are hardy and handle dry spells well.
• Azaleas: While they prefer moist, well-drained soils, many azaleas can handle occasional dry periods.
• Gazania: These sun-loving ground covers offer vibrant daisy-like flowers and are incredibly drought-tolerant.
• Nandina: Also known as sacred bamboo, these plants are not true bamboos but are drought-tolerant and offer multi-season interest as their leaves go from green in the warmer months to red and/or pruple in the cooler months.
• Mandevilla: These tropical climbers are surprisingly drought-tolerant once established and feature showy, trumpet-shaped flowers.

Daniel’s Wrap

Get excited about a world of exciting, drought-tolerant plants to discover. By understanding your space, preparing your soil, selecting appropriate plants, efficiently watering, mulching, and installing drought-tolerant plants, you can create a beautiful and resilient garden that thrives despite dry conditions.

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