Have you ever had a color crush? I know I have. Some years it's using complementary colors on the color wheel, like purple and gold (my high school colors, actually), or purple and orange. Zowie! Complementary color combinations give you action in the garden and create tension. The best kind of tension I think. Here's a good example of purple or red leafed cannas with purple and orange daylilies from 2021. See what I mean? Hemerocallis 'The Band Played On' (Stamile, 2006) with 'Orange Rocket' barberry and 'Australia' cannas. This year's color crush is harmonious. I'm having a romance with coral, which is a fabulous shading between pink and orange. I fill my wardrobe with it every chance I get, and I'm using pink and orange throughout the garden. It plays so nicely with my other crushes, too, like red and purple foliage and blue Salvia farinacea flowers. Salvia farinacea...

While these flowers aren't true ephemeral spring beauties in that they don't bloom and then go underground for summer, they don't last long, either. Because we had a very long, cool, wet, and verdant spring, I'm getting better flowers out of all the plants that are somewhat to very difficult to grow in my climate. I'm taking full advantage too. Sweet Peas When I posted the ultimate spring beauties, sweet peas, on my Instagram story, so many Oklahoma gardeners were stunned. Why? Because sweet peas are so difficult to grow in our climate. That bouquet in my hand spells victory! If you want to see the spring beauties in the galleries in a larger format, click on the photos. My other sweet peas on a trellis I received from Gardener's Supply. Isn't it pretty. 'Janet Scott' sweet peas. A bunch of sweet peas. Be sure to deadhead them and bring...

My roses have never been better than this year. In fact, this May, everything's coming up roses in my back garden and in containers throughout my entire landscape. Growing roses isn't easy, but it's definitely worth it. Rosa 'Carefree Beauty with Sambucus racemosa , Lemony Lace® elderberry. I love the lemony foliage with those pink flowers. After the wildfire, it seems as though Mother Nature is trying to be gracious and kind to me. I couldn't be more grateful. The 'Carefree Beauty' rose above didn't burn, but the one on the other side of the arbor did. It is now growing back from its own roots. I'm giving it loads of tender loving care and fertilizer. Growing roses in containers Rosa 'Easy on the Eyes' loves growing in a container. I have three of this plant, and it doesn't disappoint, changing color depending upon the weather and the age of...

In my garden, this is the year of the salvia. I deem it so. Why the year of the salvia? Two reasons: So many new varieties are on the market, and they are so easy to grow in Oklahoma. That's why I've written about salvias before in three salvias to salivate over and the bold and the beautiful. Salvia 'Roman Red' with 'Brazilian Red Hots' alternanthera. Don't poo-poo easy-to-grow things. Trust me. In our climate, you're going to need them. First, the sciency stuff. According to the Missouri Botanical Garden, "Salvia is a genus of over 900 species of annuals, biennials, herbaceous and evergreen perennials, and shrubs. "The genus name Salvia comes from the Latin word salveo meaning "to save or heal" in reference to the purported medically curative properties attributed to some plants in the genus." Favorite types of salvia If I wanted to sound more professional, I might write favorite salvia species, but...