I have fallen crazy in love with Crazytunia Moonstruck, a Proven Winners selection. I am really behind on my April garden chores, and after the last couple of days, rain and abundant sun is making the cultivated plants and weeds grow. I would love to tell you I'm all sage and wisdom about my garden chores, but I am not. Quite frankly, I am trying not to panic. Part of the back garden in the middle of April. This looks good, but I have so much more to do. So, to keep us both on track, here are garden chores I'm performing in my garden for the last two weeks of this month. Keep cutting back ornamental grasses. Try not to cut any green growth, but if you cut some, it's okay. Don't cut back Mexican feather grass or carex. They may not recover. You comb them instead. For me,...

My top post on this blog year-after-year is Ten easy flowers to grow in Oklahoma. I wrote that post forever ago in 2011, so it's time to update it with ten more easy flowers to grow. Aren't I the clever one? Cosmos bipinnatus, cosmos. The only thing stopping a good cosmos flower is the Oklahoma wind so if you're not ready to stake them occasionally, grow shorter statured ones like the dwarf 'Sonata ' mix. There are also the brighter orange and yellow C. sulphureus. 'Lady Bird Dwarf ' is advertised as a shorter mixture. Personally, I love these dark and brooding 'Rubenza' ones so I'm growing them again this year. Cosmos 'Rubenza' from Floret Seeds. Ipomoea purpurea, morning glory. From 'Grandpa Ott's' purple to 'Heavenly Blue' and many bi-colored varieties, morning glories are some of the easiest plants to grow from seed. Score or soak the seeds and then...

Front border. Please ignore the potting soil. A quick garden update. Spring has sprung at Little Cedar Garden! Click on the galleries to see larger photos.  This miscanthus needs cutting back right now. More grasses to cut back. Good news is that's all I need to do until next year. The newest border has roses that need pruning and feeding. Also, some of the perennials need cutting back. Even more work to do. It's the time of year when everything needs doing all at once.  Small, delicate yellow daffodils growing next to the garage. And, with the good weather we're having, I'm outside working like a madwoman. My daughter, Claire, said I should share what it takes to get the garden ready for May and June's highlights along with September and October's finale. I'm going to try. Orange-cupped narcissus. I don't know the variety. I gave up long ago trying...

Rosa The Lady Gardener has a complicated petal structure. She is also very disease resistant in my garden. Sunday, I wrote an article for Oklahoma Living magazine, which meant going through photographs. It was 22°F outside, and we had a bit more snow. Not the hyped snowmageddon predicted by the weather people, but still cold and windy for what seemed like the millionth day. For some reason--harrumph February--the cold weather and gray skies were getting to me so I decided we should take a look back at last May. Let's see what worked and what didn't at Little Cedar Garden, shall we? Click on the photos in any of the galleries, below, to enlarge the photos for your viewing pleasure. Huisache Tree in the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.Lucinda Hutson in front of her purple casita and in the middle of her front garden. Isn't she beautiful? A bed of...