18 Garden Plants That Tolerate Salt
Do you live in an area that has high levels of salt in the soil or air, such as by the coast? It’s no good choosing plants that struggle to grow in salty conditions; instead, choose from this diverse selection of salt-tolerant species to help you grow a healthy and beautiful garden.
Moss rose (Portulaca grandiflora) is an ornamental flowering succulent native to South America. It is usually cultivated in annual flowerbeds and as a container plant. Different cultivars have been selected for achieving variation in color, shape and petal number of the flowers.
The Virginia creeper is a North American vine from the grape family that has it all – vigorous growth, fragrant flowers, decorative blue-colored berries, and leaves that turn crimson in the fall. Using small forked tendrils with adhesive pads, the Virginia creeper will cling strongly to almost all surfaces. It can grow over entire walls, providing shelter and food for wildlife.
English ivy is the most common climber of European forests. It is a perennial woody vine with evergreen, dark, shiny lobed leaves. It utilizes aerial rootlets to attach to the tree bark with exceptional strength, helping the ivy creep more than 15 m up a tree. English ivy also grows as a forest groundcover and is invasive outside of its native range.
The Orange daylily is a perennial plant known for its captivating lily-like blooms. Its natural habitats are meadows and forests, but it is also a common garden plant in temperate regions around the world. Each individual flower lasts only a day, but the plant will bloom new ones for weeks. Orange daylily’s young buds and flowers are edible either raw or cooked. As a bonus to vegetarians, the flowers contain more fats than most vegetables.
This slow-growing tree takes decades to reach its maximum height of 40-50 feet. It produces large, orange fruit that, while edible, look better than they taste. Canary island date palms have been imported to the warmer regions of the US, but require careful fertilization to grow outside their native Canary Islands.
Prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica) is a flowering cactus native to Mexico. Prickly pear is a widely domesticated species grown for agricultural purposes in arid climates throughout the world. This species is edible and planted widely as a fruit and vegetable crop. Prickly pear is commercially valued as food, animal fodder, an adobe ingredient, and is also planted to control soil erosion.
Adam’s needle (Yucca filamentosa) is a compact evergreen shrub highly appreciated by horticulturalists and landscapers worldwide. Yucca filamentosa takes the spotlight in almost every garden due to its stunning looks. It is easily recognized by its large clusters of gentle white flowers, which are in sharp contrast to the green rosettes of sword-shaped leaves.
Common coleus is probably best known for its beautiful multicolored foliage while it also has delicate flowers. The patterned leaves of its many variants can show off nearly every color of the rainbow. Common coleus is mildly toxic if consumed, but was once used in rituals by members of the Mexican Mazatec tribe.
The Common lantana is a flowering plant that grows best in tropical environments. It spread outside the Americas when the Dutch brought it to Europe. The plant is generally regarded as an unwanted weed that reduces biodiversity. Additionally, it is toxic to livestock and harms the output of farmland.
Eastern red cedar is a coniferous evergreen tree that is native to North America. The fruit of this tree, juniper berries, is an important food source for birds in the winter. The wood of the Eastern red cedar is used in fencing as it is resistant to rot, and it is also used to line closets and chests since it also resists moths.
Quercus palustris, colloquially known as Pin oak, is a deciduous tree native to North America. Due to its favorable growing qualities and beautiful bronze coloration in autumn, Pin oak is one of the most common oak species used in landscaping.
Common winterberry (Ilex verticillata) is a berry species commonly grown in eastern gardens within the United States. Common winterberry is valued for its ability to grow in temperate climates and the colors it provides as an ornamental plant. The Common winterberry is also called Michigan holly.
Gleditsia triacanthos is a deciduous tree that is native to the Central part of Noth America. The trunk of the Honey locust is covered in thorns that are soft and green when young, but age to be hard and brittle. These thorns are relatively large and can reach up to 8 inches in length.
Ivy geranium (Pelargonium peltatum) is a flowering perennial plant that grows in rocky, well-drained soils. It was first brought to Europe by the Dutch. Blue dye can be made from its flower petals. The genus name “Pelargonium” means “stork” and was so given because the shape of Ivy geranium’s fruits resemble that of a stork’s beak.
Creeping juniper (Juniperus horizontalis) is a juniper shrub native to North America, particularly Canada. Creeping juniper is mainly grown as an ornamental plant for ground cover in gardens. There are over 100 cultivars of Creeping juniper.
Quercus alba is a long-lived oak with a broad canopy. The common name, White oak, refers to the color of its processed wood, which has a wide variety of uses – construction, for wine and whiskey barrels, making musical instruments and weapons in Japanese martial arts, etc. White oak is rarely cultivated as an ornamental due to its large size.
Creeping lilyturf (Liriope spicata) is an herbaceous flowering plant native to East Asia. It is commonly used in landscaping for ground cover. Blackish berries develop on this plant in the fall season.
Arguably the most popular hardwood in the US, lumber from Northern red oak is used for cabinets, flooring, veneers, trim, and more. When growing, the tree is large and reaches between 50 to 75 ft tall. The foliage on this tree is stunning, with dark green leaves in summer giving away to brilliant red in the fall.