Great Plants for Lush, Low-Water Gardens

If you are dealing with water restrictions, have a lackluster irrigation system or simply want to conserve resources, adding plants that don’t get thirsty is a smart way to green up your outdoor space. Yes, you heard that right; I said “green.” Because while replacing lawns with gravel and hardscape may look natural in arid climates, some areas beg for lush, colorful plantings without a cactus in sight.

Check out these plants and ideas to keep your garden green even in dry conditions.

Dry conditions don’t have to mean sacrificing your lawn. Zoysia, a warm-climate grass native to China, Japan and other areas of Southeast Asia, provides a lush, green carpet without adding an extra digit to your water bill. While this species will eventually yellow in the driest conditions, it is extremely hardy and will bounce back with the first soaking rain. Plus: no mowing required.

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Agave plants may feel like you’re toeing the line between garden sanctuary and cactus city, but layering with a dense, creeping plant — like this green spruce sedum — keeps things feeling lush.


Colorful succulents in varying heights and textures can transform a minimalist planter box into a low-maintenance statement piece. They’re a great option not only in dry climates, but also for planting areas that you’d otherwise have to water by hand.


A drought doesn’t mean you have to put your dream of an English garden on hold. Spanish lavender, blood grass and kangaroo paw can provide the color you crave even during an especially dry season.


Most people don’t equate daylilies with drought tolerance, but these hardy blooms love dry weather and full sun. Even if you live in an area with a lot of deer, they’ll still thrive.

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Let drought-resistant plants – like this red fountain grass, salvia and sedum – grow wild in planter boxes. You’ll feel like you’re sitting in a field of wildflowers even if it hasn’t rained in weeks.

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Gorgeous globes of sea lavender punctuate a constellation of African daisies and coreopsis in this garden, which is as colorful as it is droughtproof.


Magestic furcraea macdougalli lines the wall to anchor this blue Southern California garden. Festuca glauca (shown in the foreground) quickly grows big and bushy, adding a beachy feel to an otherwise desert garden.

More: Get Along With Less Lawn — Ideas to Save Water and Effort

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