As if it wasn't already difficult to grow roses in Oklahoma, we are now battling Japanese beetles too. Normally, I don't like to include words of war in my posts, but battling Japanese beetles is just that. War. Damage from Japanese beetles on Rosa 'South Africa.' Identifying Japanese beetles From the University of Illinois Extension: "Adult Japanese beetles are stocky and range from about 3/8 to 1/2 inch long. They are metallic green with coppery wing covers. There is a row of white spots along each side of the abdomen just below the wing covers, as well as two white spots on the back end of the abdomen." Japanese beetle adult in case you're wondering. These beetles are a menace I never saw these green and brown beetles in my garden until last year, and I'm hearing from all of you that they are a menace in your gardens too...

It's time for the June flower parade which, of course, includes our favorite daylilies. There are lots of other flowers blooming, but, in June, the daylilies always steal the show. First up are the spiders and UF (Unusual Form) daylilies There will be more UF daylilies as the season goes on. Hemerocallis 'Spider Miracle' is an older daylily, but it's having a very good year. H. 'Buddy's Wild and Wonderful,' a riff off of another daylily called 'Wild and Wonderful.' H. 'Spring Chicken' is such a soft blue pink in person. I love it. Another view of the splendid 'Spider Miracle' blooming in the lower garden. Hemerocallis 'Ninja Storm blooms in the lower garden. It is part of the June flower parade every year. H. 'Spider Miracle' and another daylily. I was deadheading, and my blue bucket got into the picture. This is the first time H. 'Buddy's Pierre' (Hall-J.,...

Let's chat about creating swathes of color. Yes, I'm spelling it in the English style as swathes because, as Anne of Green Gables says, an "e" adds just a little something. First things first, creating swathes of color isn't easy. Looking through 'Tamukeyama' Japanese maple, we can see color echoes in 'Orange Rocket' barberry, young crapemyrtle leaves, and 'Australia' cannas. Buy your plants in threes and fives So many gardeners have collections of one. One shrub here, one larkspur there, one peony here, and one rose there. The first way to create swathes of color is to buy and grow more than one plant. Three 'Royal Purple' smokebushes are the stars of this border. I cut them way down each spring to keep them full and lush. This photo is from summer 2021. If we're talking about a very special plant like 'Black Lace' elderberry, I can see buying just...

One of the easiest ways to grow tomatoes and other vegetables is in pots. There's freedom from worrying about soil conditions, watering, etc., when you grow tomatoes this way. You can grow both pole (indeterminate) and bush (determinate) tomatoes in pots. 'Missouri Love Apple' is a potato-leafed, indeterminate tomato that I grew from seed. Which containers? Because I like using large containers to grow tomatoes, I chose fabric pots, including 20-gallon Smart Pots—made in Oklahoma—and 30-gallon Grassroots pots—constructed in California. This year, I also bought Vivosun. While you only need a five-gallon bucket or pot to grow a tomato, the larger pots make sense in my garden. I plant marigolds with tomatoes because they're cheerful flowers for pollinators. I also grow peppers, pentas, and Asian eggplants in my containers. When you grow tomatoes in pots and use larger ones, you have more freedom to add flowers and herbs. These 'Durango...