In December, we planted two trees of hope where the horse barn stood before March 2023's wildfire. Since we don't have horses anymore, we decided to plant two maple trees in this spot where we can see them from inside the house and outside too. We chose red maples because red is not a color we have much of in the fall. 'Autumn Blaze' and 'October Glory' the two red maples we planted where the barn once stood. Oklahoma's fall is primarily yellows and oranges with a touch of red from sumac shrubs. Also, our prairie grasses give us a range of colors. Still, we don't really have brightly-colored maple trees, even Oklahoma's native Caddo sugar maple, where I live, unless you plant it, of course. First, we placed the trees where they should go. We decided to plant them where the horse barn once stood as a symbol of...

In late October, I was diagnosed with Alpha-gal syndrome which is an allergy to mammalian products. I can't eat any meat products including dairy. I also removed gelatin and glycerin unless they come from fish or vegan sources. Vegan products can't have carrageenan. It sounds simple, but it isn't. There are so many things made with meat products, and there is no label requirement to inform people that the gelatin or glycerin is from mammals. For example, did you know that many brands of toilet paper have lanolin in them? I didn't. Since my diagnosis, I'm been on a crash course of learning about Alpha-gal syndrome. I feel like I'm getting a handle on things, but I still show some symptoms. This is the walkway in part of one of my shade gardens. Big beautiful trees mean ticks are abundant. I still love this view. What does Alpha-gal syndrome have...

If you search perennial gardening in Oklahoma this time of year, you might want to know what flowers in fall. Magical closeup of sneezeweed, Helenium autumnale, still flowering. The light was just right. Well, here I am, your ever-helpful guide. I'll be glad to share which plants flower in my fall garden. A painted lady or American lady butterfly on Truffula Pink™  gomphrena which is still blooming. Butterfly experts are welcome to weigh in. Native and non-native asters flower in fall. Asters make garden magic in fall, but they do take some care. You have to cut them back in spring to keep them tidy, and some, like the aromatic asters, seem bent on garden takeover. These are not the asters you see flowering in big box stores at the end of September. I found most of my asters online and at Bustani Plant Farm over the years. The natives...

These are the plants I love in the garden at the beginning of October. The weather is still hot, but changes are coming this week. Thank goodness. 'Oriole' zinnias with dark celosia in the cutting garden. New plants I love in the garden now. Last weekend, I went to the inaugural Native Plant Festival in Oklahoma City, and I bought a few new plants. I have so many natives now, but I keep sticking more in here and there. Here's what I bought: Salvia azurea, blue sage, growing wild next to the road. Zizia aurea, golden Alexander, is considered a keystone perennial. I'm planting it in partial shade near the little green she shed. Symphyotrichum pilosum, frost aster, because I can always use another aster. Ha! I'm putting it in the shade garden. Salvia azurea, blue sage, which I hope to make happy. I've wanted it for a long time....