Gold Coast Gardener

April 9, 2006

By Gene Joyner, Extension Agent
Palm Beach County Cooperative Extension Service

Most people have noticed that it’s getting rather hot now outside when you’re doing your gardening chores and the heat is taking it’s toll on a lot of things. One group of plants that certainly aren’t happy and are starting to wither up quickly in the high temperatures are the fall and winter annuals and bedding plants that people put in last October.

This is the time of year for the spring change out of flowers to replace the ones used to cooler weather with ones more tolerant of the heat and the upcoming rainy season. Area garden stores have good assortments of plants that will be tolerant of our upcoming heat and rain and you should change out your plants some time this month or early next month depending on how much shade you have in the landscape.

Some of the favorites for going into the hot summer months include things that have colored foliage such as coleus and caladiums. These come in dozens of varieties and do well up until the fall months when they are replaced with impatiens, begonias and other common fall bedding plants.

Marigolds, purslane and various perennial salvias also make excellent choices for the upcoming hot summer months and if you like pentas, pentas is often used as a summer annual and then changed out the following October with a fall and winter bedding plant.

Most retail garden centers and nurseries have large assortments of flowering plants this time of year so it’s really a matter of personal choice what you like or want to put in. Get specific care instructions on all plants if you’re not a seasoned gardener so that they will prosper well in their new location in your home landscape.

If you have low lying areas that might flood during the upcoming rainy season, make sure bedding plants put in those areas are on slightly elevated beds to give them increased drainage opportunities. Plants in low lying areas that flood often will succumb quickly to root rots or other serious problems.

If you have questions about what types of plants are best for the heat and the upcoming rainy season, you can get some valuable free advice from the Palm Beach County Extension Service. Dial 233-1750 in the north and central county area or 276-1260 in the south county area.

If you would like to get some ideas about flowering plants used in our area, visit the Mounts Botanical Garden at 531 North Military Trail in West Palm Beach and see what they’re doing. Gardening hours are 8:30 to 4:30 Monday through Saturday and 1 to 5 Sunday afternoon.