Rosa 'April Moon' and R. 'Cramoisi Superieur' with garden art. H. 'Bela Lugosi' is blooming dark purple at right, H. 'South Sea Enchantment' is the lovely bright pink.  Color me beautiful. That's what my garden would say if you could see her. The summer of 2012 is whispering with soft winds instead of roaring like the fiery furnace of 2011. To say Oklahoma gardeners are glad is an understatement. We are relieved. We've had a bit of rain, and mid-day heat opens daylily faces as they stretch toward the sun. They and we are content. Echinacea purpurea, which now reseeds throughout the garden with Hemerocallis 'Thunder and Lightning' No Death Star for the moment . . . instead, Mr. Sun is full of jolly, good cheer. It may all change in July, but for now, the garden is happy and content with her lot. Plants are abundantly growing, and we...

Because I'm a Proven Winners® Garden Guru, I received two boxes of plants this spring, many of which will be introduced in 2013. Below is a quick video of just some of the ways I used them in my garden and in containers. After I  finished planting, I asked Proven Winners® if I could give away some of my favorite cultivars. They agreed, so we are going to have a Proven Winners® giveaway fiesta with Senorita Rosalita® leading the way. I get excited just thinking about it. Here are the details: Date: Contest begins today, May 31,, 2012 and ends on Friday June 8, 2012 at Midnight. Location: Here at my blog. How to enter: Enter by leaving a comment telling me your favorite Proven Winners® cultivar. Then, if you want to enter again, tweet or facebook this contest leaving me a comment that you have done so along with the...

From the back of a Harley Davidson motorcyle. We took a long ride yesterday through the northwestern part of Oklahoma heading first to Okarche, then Kingfisher where we met our friends, Dede, a/k/a "Red" and John. They rode with us for the rest of the day. The morning started out refreshingly cool, but after we left Roman Nose State Park just north of Watonga, the weather turned sultry hot. Incidentally, Roman Nose State Park is named after Cheyenne Chief Henry Roman Nose, whose encampment was in this canyon of beautiful springs. The famous sign to the park, which I love, was based upon Chief Roman Nose's face and features his famous war bonnet. On a personal note, the lodge was recently renovated by my niece who works for the Parks Department. We "hiked" a very gentle rise to the falls. It being a holiday, children were playing everywhere in the...

Do you ever have times when there is so much to say, you don't know where to begin? After visiting Asheville and the Garden Bloggers Fling, I am without words. I could expound upon the food . . . . Okay, for a moment, I will. The gluten and dairy free food in Asheville rivals any I've eaten anywhere. Bill and I haunted the Green Sage Coffeehouse and Cafe every morning when we broke our fast, and we had a wonderful dinner at Posana Cafe (which was completely gluten free), but that's not all. I also had beautiful, healthy food at every fling event. My friends took such good care of me and the other flingers who had food and other issues. They were gracious and kind, and kindness means so much when you have a food allergy or intolerance. A special thank you to Christopher, Annie, Frances and the wonderful...