Top Heat-Tolerant Plants for Summer in Central Ohio

Summer’s heat can make gardening a challenge, but you still can have a beautiful, lush home garden if you have the right plants in your garden.  In order for plants to survive the summer heat in central Ohio, you need to plant heat-tolerant plants.  So, here are our top heat-tolerant plant varieties and what “heat-tolerant” means.

What Does Heat-Tolerant Mean?

Heat-tolerant plants are plants that can stay healthy in high temperatures.  Unlike many other plants, heat-tolerant plants don’t wilt, go dormant, or burn in hot weather.  They often have thick leaves that act as cooling systems to help them survive and thrive.

Some people mix up heat-tolerant with drought-tolerant.  The difference is that heat-tolerant plants do well in high temperatures and drought-tolerant plants stay healthy even if they experience long periods without water regardless of temperature.  Some heat-tolerant plants are drought-tolerant.  It’s important to know your area’s annual precipitation, peak summer temperatures, and water restrictions to know what plants you need to select for your garden.

Top Heat-Tolerant Plants for Central Ohio

Selecting plants naturally equipped to handle high temperatures is key to a flourishing, low-stress garden during central Ohio's warmest months. Here are some of our favorite, resilient plants that thrive in the summer sun.

Lantana

Lantana are clusters of bright, vibrant flowers that attract hummingbirds and butterflies.  They bring a burst of continuous color to your garden and come in a variety of colors including purple, pink, white, yellow and orange.  Some lantana varieties are even bi-colored and some have ombre flowers.  

These deer-resistant plants will bloom all summer long and into the fall, so they make for great window box flowers, filler flowers, and hanging basket flowers.  They love full sun and well-draining soil, so lantana are perfect flowers for hot, sunny spots in your Ohio garden.

Coneflower

Coneflowers (also known as echinacea) are perennials in central Ohio and come in pink, orange, yellow, white, and purple.  In fact, purple coneflowers are native plants to Ohio, so they thrive in Ohio gardens.  Plus, coneflowers support local pollinators and will attract birds and butterflies to your yard.

These tough flowers are both heat-tolerant and drought-tolerant once they are established.  Give them ample space to grow and full sun with moderate watering.

Sedum

Sedums are succulents that are famous for their resilience and their ability to thrive in hot, dry conditions with minimal water.  Their fleshy leaves store water, which makes them low-maintenance plants for Ohio gardens. From groundcovers plants to taller upright varieties, sedums give texture to gardens and will continue to provide color and beauty all throughout the summer and fall.

Once they’re established, water sedums rarely and simply enjoy their late-season blooms.  Consider using sedums in rock gardens, containers, or as border plants. 

Knock Out Rose

If you want easy-to-care-for roses that are also heat-tolerant, then check out Knock Out Roses.  This low-maintenance rose variety tolerates summer’s heat and humidity, and Knock Out Roses are more resistant to rose disease compared to other varieties.  Also, Knock Out Roses will continue to bloom all summer long.

Give Knock Out Roses soil with good drainage and full sun to encourage the plant to produce numerous flowers.  Give them a balanced fertilizer or a rose-specific fertilizer, but do not fertilize them during the late summer.

Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia)

Black-eyed Susans (also known as rudbeckias) bloom from June to August in central Ohio.  They have dark brown, green, or black centers with daisy-like petals and rough-textured, oval leaves.  The petals come in gold, orange, yellow, bronze, red, mahogany, and bicolor options.  

Black-eyed Susans are highly heat-tolerant, drought-tolerant, and deer-resistant.  Plus, they support local pollinators by providing them valuable food.

Give black-eyed Susans well-draining soil, good air flow, and full sun (although they can tolerate partial shade).

Russian Sage

Russian sage is often mistaken for lavender because of its similar appearance, but the two plants are different.  Some of the differences between Russian sage and lavender are that Russian sage has a more wispy look than lavender and does not have the same fragrance.  

Russian sage is an extremely drought-tolerant perennial that gives long-lasting silvery foliage and delicate purple-blue blooms.  It thrives in central Ohio’s hot summers as long as it receives full sun and well-draining soil.  After Russian sage gets established in its first year, water the plant rarely since overwatering can cause root rot.  Expect Russian sage to bloom from mid-summer into fall in your Ohio garden.

Zinnia

Zinnias are annuals that are heat-tolerant and even thrive in Ohio’s summer heat. They produce abundant long-lasting and colorful flowers.  Plus, zinnias contain a lot of nectar, which means that these flowers attract butterflies, bees, and moths.  Indeed, they are wonderful flowers for supporting local pollinators.

Zinnias come in a wide variety of sizes and colors including, purple, pink, yellow, orange, red and white.  Zinnias can be multicolored, striped, or solid.  They make for beautiful cut flowers and are as great as border flowers or container flowers.

Give zinnias well-draining, neutral soil with full sun.  Once established, zinnias are both heat-tolerant and drought-tolerant flowers.

Need Help, Gardening Supplies, or Plants?

If you’re unsure about what flowers you should plant in your Ohio garden this summer or would like some help, then feel free to stop by Timbuk Farm’s Garden Center or send us a message. We’re a family-owned business and we grow everything locally here in Ohio. We know Ohio gardening, and our garden experts are happy to answer any questions you have about your garden and how to make the most out of your summer garden.