Honestly, much of my spring garden looks like hell.
My spring garden is a shadow of its former self. Remember the October ice storm? After cleaning up all the limbs and being without power for two weeks, two more snowstorms hit Oklahoma. The final February storm had an extended and intense cold period that did a number on my garden. Any plants below the snow line, which looks to be about six inches, are fine for the most part. The perennials are pretty fresh. Snow is a great insulator.
Everything above the snow line in my spring garden burnt to a crisp.
The plants above ground, especially trees and shrubs, took a terrible beating, unlike anything I’ve seen before. I don’t know if the deodar cedars will ever recover although I saw one in Oklahoma City starting to sprout fresh green tips. As for my southern magnolia, Magnolia grandiflora, I called three arborists for help, but they are all booked until June. I planted that tree as a sapling 32 years ago, so that one really hurts. I hope someone can save it. It’s too tall for me to handle.
My poor southern magnolia needs help. 
This deodar cedar looks really bad, but I’m hopeful it will come back. The wood is leftover from our home projects. 
Abelia x grandiflora ‘Kaleidoscope is in shock. I’m watching it for any new growth. 
I cut down all of my crapemyrtle trees and shrubs to the ground. They will come back, but for several years they will be shrubs. Such is life gardening in Oklahoma.
I’ve been working feverishly to clean up debris, remove trees, and cut down crapemyrtles which I hope will come back from the ground. They have before. My friend, Sharon, and I worked all day last Saturday just removing dead plant material. I still have much more to do.
I have two favorite power tools right now. They are made by DeWalt and are the first battery-powered tools strong enough to do this kind of work. They are pricey, but the batteries are interchangeable and rechargeable. I cut down all of my crapemyrtles trees with the DEWALT 20V MAX XR Chainsaw. I used the DEWALT 20V MAX Cordless Hedge Trimmer to cut down my ornamental grasses and will use it to trim up the boxwoods. I’ll also use it out front on my shrubs. It is fast and easy to use. No electric cords either.
I surveyed the remaining damage with a plan for the future.
I took a break from carnage control and walked around my property today, taking pictures. In the ice storm, I lost two Japanese maples, and another is damaged but alive. They were all small trees because they were in the newest shady section of the garden, but it’s still a hit. I’m sad to report that one Acer palmatum, ‘August Moon’ is no more. I have one ‘August Moon’ remaining, and I’m grateful for that. I replaced the other with a new orange one from Marcum’s Nursery. I think Marcum’s has a great selection of Japanese maples. Many sizes too so that they don’t completely break your budget. I love Japanese maples in the Oklahoma landscape so I keep planting them in shady spots.
[Click on the gallery photos to enlarge them.]
The nandinas may need to be cut down too. They are brown and ugly, but the Japanese maples against the garage are beautiful in their spring raiment. 
New Japanese maple. I have the tag around here somewhere, but couldn’t find it for this post. 
Native trees like this Ribes odoratum, clove currant, came through the winter just fine. It’s very young and has a long time to grow. 
Ribes odoratum, clove currant, is native to Oklahoma.
I noticed the native trees and shrubs had very little damage from the ice, cold, and heavy, wet snow. Ribes odoratum, clove currant, Viburnum rufidulum, southern blackhaw, Lindera benzoin, spicebush, V. dentatum, southern arrowwood, and Ceanothus americanus, New Jersey tea, all sailed through the storms with aplomb. So, I believe I will plant more native trees and shrubs throughout my garden. I finally found Amelanchier × grandiflora ‘Autumn Brilliance’ serviceberry at Nature Hills Nursery which I will plant next to the green she shed. I couldn’t find one locally. When it arrives, I’ll take a photo and post it to Instagram.
Even so, I won’t ever have a fully native garden. There are several exotics I still love, but in places where nothing else thrives, native shrubs seem to fit the bill. Also, they take less care than roses. I still love roses, and I ordered several from David Austin. They should be arriving soon.
So, that’s the garden report after the storm. All of my seedlings are still hanging out in the greenhouse while I watch the weather. We may have one more cold morning so don’t plant any tropicals yet. That includes tomatoes.
Beautiful if battered, my garden will look different this year, but it will survive. It has been through similar extremes before. I hope all of you are having a beautiful spring. Talk to you soon.
I thought I had lost my beautyberry that faces to the northwest but was in a corner of the house which I guess offered a little protection from the wind. I lost the dwarf nandinas next to it but, lo and behold, I see it is leafing out.
Hi Vicki, yes, all of my nandinas died down to the snow line. They are coming back though. I’m glad your beautyberry is too.
I’ve got a small hosta garden I have to transplant to a different spot because the thick shade they were in last year no longer exists. There has been so much change to the landscape this year.
Hi Kara, there has been for sure. I am starting to see growth beneath the snow line, and that has given me courage to cut things back as I must. Hang in there. Things will be different, but maybe you won’t have to move all of your hostas. I’d wait a bit to see how much shade you actually will have. ~~Dee
Have never been one to severely prune my crape myrtles. We lost a GIANT yaupon holly and all of our nandinas. Figured we lost our crape myrtles, too, but has been too early to tell. Feel like I’ve done nothing but chainsaw for months. Guess I will follow your lead and whack down all of my crape myrtles. Ugh. My main question for you is about your clove currant. I grew up in Colorado and my folk’s house was overrun with bushes that looked just like that! I loved them! We didn’t know what they were as the original two were a gift from my Grandad from Wisconsin. Do yours have little spots of red in the center of the yellow blossoms? Where did you get yours? BTW, had just about given up on lavender but your other article convinced me to invest in chicken grit and give another try! Thank you!
Hi Anonymous, I don’t normal severely prune my crapemyrtles either, but this year, all of that branching is dead. Mine are now coming up from the ground, and slow at that. Ribes odoratum is the clove currant native to Oklahoma and probably Colorado too. I didn’t go look it up to see. I ordered mine from either Prairie Moon or Nature Hills. I haven’t found it locally. Hope that helps. My lavender is all coming back, but again slowly. Put it where it won’t get much water. It hates a lot of water. ~~Dee
It is always a kick in the gut when Mother Nature throws one of these ice bombs on our garden. I know your garden will be coaxed back to health and beauty with your nurturing attention. Hang in there.
Thank you Lisa! As always, you make me feel better. The garden is coming back, and I’m doing my best to clear all of the dead stuff away. Hope your garden is starting to spring forward too. ~~Dee
Here in Cherokee County, Oklahoma, we have similar views and are also holding our breathes, crossing fingers. We missed the ice storm y’all had, but only barely. The ice age of February, however, covered these hills, too. Nandina’s: the same as yours; Gardenias: gone. Abelias, rough; Hollies; some gone, some struggling; Lorapetalums: gone, I fear; and I sure picked the wrong year to experiment with the attempted (read: tempted) hardiness of a stout camelia!! Our evergreen Azaleas have been essentially mowed and I wonder if’n the collections in Honor Heights ( about 45 mins West of here,) are any better off. The deciduous Magnolias here have been putting on a stellar show, however, as if knowing to step up, and the Dogwoods are in early opening for Easter Sunday!
Jesse, I noticed my hollies are losing all of their leaves, but the stems are flexible. That gives me hope. Yes, a lot of things are dead to the snow line, but I just cut back my nandinas when I could see some growth. It will make them better. Yay! Oh my, the dogwood in my front border is scrumptious right now. Hallelujah! Happy Spring and hang in there. ~~Dee
I was so sad about all our trees in October but that arctic blast in February really was bad! My youpons and azaleas took the biggest hit in my garden along with some holly shrubs. I am seeing tiny buds so although they look bad I am hoping they will all leaf out. I’m so sorry about the losses in your garden…especially the japanese maples (my favorite tree) I’m praying we get no late freezes as I don’t think my shrubs can take another hit. Fingers crossed!
Sonia, I think we’re past the freezes now. Sure looks like it, and the native oak trees are blooming so that’s a good sign. Most of my plants will survive, but a lot of them have been cut back to the snow line. I’m being philosophical about it. Just removing the dead stuff and moving on. Hugs!~~Dee
It’s been rough to see the winter damage to southern gardens. I’m sorry to hear about all the damage!
Hi Robin, it was hard, but we’ll just consider it a rebirth for most of the plants anyway. Maybe ourselves too. ~~Dee
Yeah, your garden took a beating. Gardening teaches us so much–even lessons about resilience and perseverance that we really don’t want to learn, at least not the hard way!
Hi Kathy, yes, it sure does. ~~Dee