Full Sun flowers/plants??

[drgnfly30]

Admittedly I normally have a black thumb but my backyard is bare & I'd love to have some container gardens on my newly refurbished deck... the problem I have is that it is in full sun 90% of the day & gets very very hot... what flowers/plants would you recommend that will withstand the elements??
Thanks!

 

[PrincessMommyof2]

So many ways to go with this! How about so Shasta daises and wave petunias around the outside. Or some white or purple echinecea and million bells. Daylillies love the sun. You can even train morning glory up a small trellis. Mini roses are always fun.

 

[ariel & eric]

If you want annuals - petunias or begonias are great, both are hard to kill if you keep watered.

I have carpet roses in the front of my house. Low maintainance and lots of flowers all summer. Daylillies are idiot proof, too.

ASk at your local garden center. They should be able to tell you what will work and what won't.

 

[mommytotwo]

Sunflowers and impatients.

 

[UrsulasShadow]

Impatiens will burn out in the full sun.
Here's a link to a wonderful article...Container gardening

For annuals, I like portulaca, marigolds, calibrachoa, Pennisetum rubrum, calendula, cosmos, Pelargonium (geraniums), nasturtium, cleome, with maybe some licorice vine or dusty miller thrown in. These can stand an awful lot of hot, dry conditions.

 

[justjulie]

Try some of these too:

colius
celocia
potato vine
geranium
dusty miller

Our yard is all sun, all the time and that's what we put in our containers last year -beautiful

What about an herb garden in one of your containers - not much colour but you can throw in purple oregano and curly parsley for variety and it smells wonderful ...

 

[LAinSEA]

I began growing tropicals and near tropicals on my back patio a couple of years ago. We tuck them up next to the house during the winter and cover them up if it gets under 25 degrees at night.

If you have a sunny hot deck, you might want to try growing tropical plants. I have success with palms, a hardy banana, cannas, olive tree (really gorgeous) and albutilon (chinese lantern or flowing maple) in mixed containers with other perenials (day lillies, euphorbia, basket flower and ornamental grasses). I've just potted up a purple fountain grass (an annual in our area) and a colorful yucca also.

-Laurie

 

[Kahana-ri]

Impatiens will burn out in the full sun.

I have to admit I am a true example of this

I even read the little tag, that said 'shaded area'. Needless to say, I had to replant and save my poor little impatiens, wilted and burned. They are recovering nicely in a very shaded area.

I did end up planting phlox in the sunny flower beds. They seem easy to maintain and are doing well.

 

[Crankyshank]

My hydrangeas and my azaleas are thriving in my full sun yard. I just need to make sure they are fed and watered and they do great.

 

[vanyel]

Impatiens will burn out in the full sun.
Here's a link to a wonderful article...Container gardening

For annuals, I like portulaca, marigolds, calibrachoa, Pennisetum rubrum, calendula, cosmos, Pelargonium (geraniums), nasturtium, cleome, with maybe some licorice vine or dusty miller thrown in. These can stand an awful lot of hot, dry conditions.

Thanks for the link to the container gardening site. I have a large yard with ever expanding garden area but I still do some containers. It had some great ideas, including using hostas (mostly shade) in a container which I had never thought about doing.

To add to your list, I also like zinnas for full sun. Cleomes are a favorite, and marigold are almost impossible to kill. Geraniums are no longer "your mother's red" but come in great colors and different varieties, and are very hardy.

 

[rockyroad]

My hydrangeas and my azaleas are thriving in my full sun yard. I just need to make sure they are fed and watered and they do great.

They would burn up here in Memphis, but that's what makes gardening interesting. You can always try and it might work.

Another plant that I have used in full sun and at my mom's house we put them out on her big hot solar oven driveway is the Kimberley Queen fern. They can't stay out in the winter, but they look beautiful and cool in the hot hot sun. If you put one in a big pot, then put some wave petunias or ornamental sweet potato vine around the edge to flow out of the pot.

http://www.charlie-cook.com/Photos/CC_PhotoDetails.asp?Photo_ID=774

I saw some Kimberley Queen ferns at Home Depot and at Walmart this week, so they are easy to find.