Heat Tolerant Vs Drought Tolerant Shrubs
When the summer sun beats down and rainfall disappears for weeks, plants in your landscape can either thrive or barely survive. That’s why terms like heat tolerant and drought tolerant are so important. While often used together, these plant traits are not the same.
Let’s break down what they mean, how they differ, and spotlight some First Editions® shrubs that can take the heat, or a dry spell, and still look great!
Defining the Terms
Heat Tolerant plants can endure and thrive in high temperatures, often in full sun. They’ve adapted to maintain growth and flowering even during the hottest parts of the season.
Drought Tolerant plants can survive extended periods without supplemental water. These plants often have special adaptations such as deep roots or waxy leaves to reduce water loss.
For a more in-depth look at drought tolerant plants, check out this pervious blog post: Drought Tolerant Plants
Why They’re Different
It’s easy to assume that a heat-tolerant plant can also handle drought, but that’s not always true. A plant might thrive in high temperatures as long as it has regular moisture, but struggle when water is limited. Likewise, a drought-tolerant plant may survive dry periods but falter in extreme heat if it’s adapted to cooler climates.
Knowing the difference helps you pick plants that match both your climate and your watering habits.
Why It Matters in the Landscape
Incorporating heat and drought tolerant plants into your landscape design can:
- Reduce water use and irrigation needs
- Increase the long-term success of your plantings
- Support pollinators and wildlife with less effort
- Create more resilient landscapes in a changing climate
Whether you’re designing a xeriscape, enhancing a pollinator border, or choosing plants for a hot street median, selecting for the right tolerance is key.
Heat Tolerant Shrubs
These First Editions® selections are built to thrive in high heat and full sun:
Eternal Sunshine™ Abelia (Abelia x grandiflora)
This compact, mounding shrub features vibrant golden-yellow foliage that doesn’t fade in the summer sun. Tiny white blooms appear in late summer, attracting pollinators. It performs exceptionally well in full sun and heat.
Lunar Magic® Crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia)
A striking shrub with dark foliage and luminous white flowers, Lunar Magic® offers long-lasting summer bloom power. It thrives in full sun and intense heat, making it an excellent choice for Southern gardens.
Trippy Pink® Butterfly Bush (Buddleia davdii)
This colorful cultivar features vibrant pink flower spikes that attract butterflies and bees all season long. With a compact form and heat tolerance, it’s perfect for sunny beds, borders, or pollinator gardens.
Opening Day® Doublefile Viburnum (Viburnum plicatum)
Opening Day™ delivers a profusion of baseball-sized white blooms in early spring. Its upright habit, glossy foliage, and ability to perform in full sun and hot conditions make it a standout heat-tolerant shrub.
Drought Tolerant Shrubs
Queen Bee® Chastetree (Vitex agnus-castus)
Vitex is known for its exceptional drought resistance, and Queen Bee® takes that reliability to the next level. With fragrant purple-blue flower spikes and attractive gray-green foliage, it’s a magnet for pollinators and a standout in dry, sunny landscapes.
Sapphire Surf Bluebeard™ (Caryopteris x clandonensis)
This compact shrub bursts into vivid blue blooms in late summer. Loved by bees and butterflies, it thrives in well-drained soils and performs well even during dry spells.
Cinnamon Girl® Distylium (Distylium)
With dense evergreen foliage and a low, spreading habit, this tough shrub is ideal for mass plantings and erosion control. It’s highly drought tolerant once established and tolerates heat and humidity as well.
Little Hottie® Panicle Hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata)
Unlike many hydrangeas, Little Hottie® is surprisingly tolerant of dry conditions once established. It features large, bright white blooms that age to soft pink in cool climates in the fall.
Looking for even more drought-tolerant selections? Explore the full list here: Shop Drought Tolerant Shrubs
Knowledge Is Power
Heat and drought tolerance are individual traits, and they aren’t interchangeable. When selecting plants for your garden or landscape, take a moment to consider both the heat they’ll face and the water they’ll receive. With the right selections, your landscape will remain beautiful, vibrant, and low maintenance, even under stress.
For a full chart of our First Editions® Shrubs & Trees including drought tolerance, bloom times and much more, visit our Bailey Nurseries Resources page.
