Colorful Annuals that Love the Heat!
Cora Cascade Vinca (shown above in Bright Rose color)
This has quickly become one of our favorite plants for many reasons! It has all the wonderful characteristics of regular upright vinca, such as consistent blooming, thrives in heat and sun, AND requires less water than many other warm season annuals. The Cora series of both the upright and cascading vinca are disease resistant as well. The Cora Cascade series is unique; it trails neatly out of containers or spreads out, up to several feet in width, in the ground. Cascading vinca has somehow gone kind under the radar for the past several years, but it’s a winner and worth trying in your landscape! It has even been chosen as an Arkansas Diamond plant selection by an experienced Arkansas gardeners, growers and horticulturists. The Cora Cascade Vinca is available in a variety of colors such as white and a wide array of pink, including cherry, lilac, rose and much more. Another feature to love about Cora Cascade; it only reaches about 8 inches in height, making it a great front layer for taller annuals. As you might guess, it trails very nicely over stone walls too. We need to say this again because it really cuts down on planting; each plant will spread to around 2 feet wide which means a few plants will go a long way!
Black Cherry Tattoo Vinca
Tattoo Vinca Series
This is an upright vinca with unique colors; it will grow to 10-14 inches tall and only 6-8 inches wide, making it a perfect filler for combination planters or planted in the ground. Here is what the plant breeder has to say about this series (and we agree!) ‘The art of plants comes alive on every Tattoo bloom – each petal looks like it is inked or airbrushed with soft brush strokes of dark purple. Adding these novelties to your lineup shows that you have your finger on the pulse of what today’s gardener really wants: bold, fun, flashy appeal. Tattoo…without a doubt, the most unique vinca on the market today!’
Lantana (shown in foreground above and in the first image, blooming yellow)
Yes, we know, lantana has been around for a long time and is nothing new BUT did you know there are new varieties that stay smaller and mound, such as the Bandana series? And that there are tons of colors, including hot pink with orange and yellow, as well as white, purple, and shades of pink? And white with yellow (talking about you Lemon Zest and Lemon Cream!). The tried and true spreading New Gold is always popular; one big reason is well, is just how big it gets (several feet tall and can grow to over 3 feet in width)! The large selection of variety, from growth habit to color variation, make this heat and sun tolerant warm season annual a forever favorite. We get this question often; which one comes back? New Gold often comes back but the most cold hardy variety is Miss Huff and Pink Huff, with a cold hardiness of Zone 7b. On the most recent version of the U.S. Hardiness Zone map, it should be hardy here in central Arkansas. Want to learn more about this new map? We have a post you may want to check out!
Angelonia (above)
Did you know that Angelonia is also known as Summer Snapdragon? Can you see the resemblance? These upright stalks of blooms may look delicate but they take the summer heat, humidity and sun with aplomb. There have been many advancements for angelonia over the years, giving rise to a variety of series, featuring different colors, plant size and bloom size. What do we love most about this plant? It’s a totally different shape of annual; it’s upright without being so tall that it’s overbearing (as an example; the Serena series tops out at 12-16″ tall). The colors available include blue hues, purple, white and various pinks, so it can be used in warm or cool color scheme landscape beds or combo pots. This annual also pairs well with Cora Cascade or fanflower in front of it, or planted in mass in a variety of colors by itself.
Purslane
No post about heat loving annuals would be complete without mentioning purslane! A low water needs annual, featuring vibrant colors such as yellow, red, orange, magenta, even striped blooms, double blooms and blooms with little puffball looking petals in the center, surrounded with a row of different colored petals. This is another low growing annual, that spreads or trails out of containers. It’s closely related to portulaca, and are often confused with each other. Portulaca has the longer needle-like leaves, while purslane has flat rounded leaves. Portulaca, also known as moss rose, can usually be found in 6 packs, while purslane is available in 4 inch or larger pots, such as hanging baskets, like these shown above. Purslane blooms may or may not close at some point during the day, based on heat and sun exposure.
This is by no means an exhaustive list of heat tolerant annuals; other options include sun coleus, SunPatiens, fanflower (pictured above), euphorbia, salvia, bronzeleaf begonias and celosia. And we haven’t talked yet about tropicals or perennials that love the heat; there are also a ton of these, as well as shrubs. Bottom line, there is still time to plant and enjoy blooms all summer long!
One great option for a mixed combination hanging basket of heat loving annuals is our Good Earth Hanging Garden Sampler baskets! These are filled with lantana, vinca, purslane and silver falls. They are created each year, especially for us, as a way to take home a ‘sample’ of our huge, and long loved, hanging gardens that welcome visitors into the Gift Shop!
