Discover resilient plants perfect for any soil type

If your soil is less than perfect, you might be wondering what type of plants will thrive on such soil. Fear not and stop wondering, because there are quite a few plants that grow in bad soil. Not every gardener has rich, loamy soil, and knowing the type of soil your garden has is vital to help your plants grow.

Most plants love well-draining, nutrient-rich, loamy soils. Some plants actually like less hospitable types of soil. So if you’re looking for plants for your bad soil, it’s a good idea to identify what type of soil you’re working with.

Best plants for poor soils

When you have determined what type of soil your garden has, it is time to pick out your plants. These are the types of plants for poor soils:

Lavender

Lavenders can be challenging to grow in moist garden soil. While it’s not impossible to cultivate them, achieving blooms can be difficult under these conditions. These plants are highly adaptable to various soil types, including compact and rocky soils, but they require good drainage and at least 5 to 6 hours of sunlight daily. If you can provide these two essential conditions, you’ll have a resilient and long-lasting addition to nearly any type of soil in your garden.

Magnolias

These flowers like neutral to acid soils, and are adaptable enough to grow in any moist, well-drained soil. If there’s a lot of organic matter breaking down in your soil, then magnolia plants will thrive. If you are growing the plant in clay soil, you should add silt to the soil to improve it and prevent the soil from getting waterlogged.

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Coneflower

Coneflowers are a hardy plant coming in a range of colours. Most come in pinkish-purple blooms with their petals facing downwards. Purple coloured coneflower tolerates clay and sandy soils well enough for them to thrive. These plants have low-nutrient needs and are drought-tolerant. Coneflowers can easily tolerate poor soils but will need full sun for their big, showy blooms.

Viburnum

Viburnum is a large, diverse group of shrubs with clusters of blooms that are generally aromatic. Despite their dainty blossoms, viburnum plants are one tough cookie, thriving in a variety of soil types. With ample sunlight and good drainage, most viburnum shrubs will bloom with attractive fruit and beautiful fall leaves.