Rain is the big news at my Little Cedar Garden. It rained the entire time I was in Denver for the Garden Bloggers’ Fling. It rained when I returned home, and on Saturday night, Sunday morning and this morning.
As I went outside to grab these photos before church, the mosquitoes were thick. Eight landed on me, and I killed at least six of them. I’m fast. I hate those creatures.
I don’t mean to complain, but I am tired of the rain.
According to the Oklahoma Mesonet, Guthrie, Oklahoma received 15.34 inches of rain in May. I saw on the local weather Oklahoma has had over 62 inches of rain so far this year. Our normal rainfall is around 35 inches to give you some context. We’re only in June.
That seems impossible, but, apparently, it is not. Have I mentioned I’m sick of the rain?
Click on the galleries to make the photos larger.
Entry to the back garden with American wisteria ‘Amethyst Falls on the arbor. 
The lavender chairs at the end of the main walkway 
Looking at the house from down in the back garden. 
The potager beaten down by rain.
I must admit the garden is green and beautiful. The perennial garden, and especially the daylilies, love all this rain, but the weeds love it too as do the mosquitoes.
Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ against a ninebark. I only have one bulb that survived all these years. 
Echinacea PowWow® Wild Berry coneflower is another wonderful perennial. Super easy to grow compared to some other varieties. This one has overwintered in my garden for three or four years. 
Echinacea ‘Cheyenne Spirit’ is a fantastic plant that come in a variety of colors from pink to yellow to orange to white. It comes in all heights and sizes too. 
Echinacea Sombrero® Salsa Red and Sombrero® Granada Gold
So, the first garden chores are:
- Weed the beds and check for mulch that washed away in the many hard storms we’ve had.
- Deadhead the daylilies. While I was out of town they bloomed with abandon, but each day I go out in the morning and deadhead. Do you have to do this? No, but the daylilies look better, and old blooms often impede new ones opening.
- Deadhead the roses. Do you want more blooms on your roses? Deadheading them tells the shrub to get with it and produce more flowers. Since the weather hasn’t been excruciatingly hot, they should produce another flush before fall.
- Cut back the asters and garden mums. This prevents them from blooming early. It doesn’t hurt anything if you don’t get to it, and they bloom early, but they also tower over everything else impeding the rest of the garden’s growth. Cutting them back is part of your garden’s best practices.
- Prune spring-blooming shrubs. If a shrub has finished flowering, and you don’t want fruit from it, now is the time to cut it back. That way, you won’t sacrifice next year’s flowers.
- Harvest fruit. I have a few peaches that survived the late freeze. Thank you honey bees for pollinating what was there. I also have blueberries on one of my shrubs in my containers. Blueberries ripen over time so I go outside and pick a few each morning to have with my cereal. I also planted another blueberry shrub this spring in another pot to get a better harvest. I may plant another one next spring as we are huge blueberry fans. I want to thank the bumblebees for their assistance in early spring pollination.
- Fix the gravel paths that washed out. Again.
So, that’s our chore list for now. I have much to do, but I’ll be out there tomorrow working hard to get things back together before I go on another trip. Look for a few posts about our Denver fling. We all had a great time, and now I want Rosa glauca for my garden too.
Rosa glauca in a Denver garden. 
Rosa glauca. I want it for the foliage and rose hips.
OMG Dee!
I just stumbled onto your site and I find myself in “Sunday-morning-with-coffee-on-the-gazebo-gardeners heaven!”
Count me as one of your fans already. Your site and garden so inspirational!
Thank you! Loved this blog on “Rain” now going to read about Scented Geraniums – also my favs!
I’m in the heat of Northern Arizona and still (after 8 years) trying to get accustomed to the growing climate.
So inspired,
Marie Jarreau
Hi Marie, I am so glad we got to have coffee together. 😉 Thank you for your sweet words. They mean so much to me. Since you live in Arizona, have you read AZ Plant Lady? She’s a friend of mine and gardens in your state. However, I know that northern Arizona has some similar climate conditions to my own. I so enjoyed meeting you. Let’s chat again.
I thought we’ve been having a rainy spring until I read your numbers. Yikes! That dark purple daylily is a beauty. I grow Little Grapette but it’s not nearly as lush looking. I’m growing that rose as well but very few flowers. I wouldn’t care except I want rose hips!
Linda, for the life of me, I cannot figure out why WordPress puts your comments in spam. I keep telling them to stop. Sorry, it took me so long to respond. That’s why. I once grew Little Grapette. I love that little daylily. It’s been a rainy spring almost all over the U.S. except for the south. They are below average. England is too. I guess we hogged it all in Oklahoma, but it looks like things are turning around a bit. We may get storms tonight, but I’m hoping they come to nothing.~~Dee
Love your daylily collection. Yes I too am over all the rain! Finally we have sunshine and warmer temps. I moved some daylilles because they were getting too much shade and they are blooming well now. The Denver Botanical Garden is one of my favorites! Can’t wait to see your photos. We happened to be there when they had the Chihuly glass collection in the garden..it was stunningly beautiful. I kept thinking about hail the whole time we visited as here in Oklahoma we couldn’t risk that. Enjoy your time at home and don’t work too hard !
Sonia, actually I have five Chihuly-type leaves in my garden. They are quite thick and have been through many hail storms with no damage. Surprising, I know. I loved the Denver Botanic Garden and would go there again and again if I could. I will probably do a post soon on the daylilies. They are over halfway through their bloom cycle. I am really enjoying ‘Ram’ and ‘Hyperion’ in the garden that faces the street. Thank you for always stopping by and commenting. It makes my day!~~Dee
Also sick of rain. I didn’t thing the rain in CO was too bad, though. It rained 2 days out of 3 in May here in Chicago.
Hey y’all! I agree, the rain in CO was just right. Here in Oklahoma, we’re still getting rain. I can barely keep ahead of the weeds. They are actually winning. It was great to see you both at the Fling.~~Dee
I really shouldn’t complain about the rain either, because we usually dry out by summers end. But goodness, when I wish for rain, I’m asking for normal amounts in regular increments, not daily deluges!
Hi Robin, you can complain about the rain to me anytime. I hear ya. The whole time I wrote this post though I feared I was jinxing my garden for later. We so often don’t get any rain.~~Dee
Yeah the rains are becoming a serious issue around here too. It’s nice not to have to water but this is getting ridiculous. I’m sorry about all the wash out your beautiful garden is getting. Your blooms are looking wonderful though.
Hi Christine, thank you for your kind words. We had a little respite here at Little Cedar while I was in England. It only rained 1.5 inches while we were gone. So, I think we’re turning the corner. I need to weed my paths though. They are a mess. I hope it’s slowed down in your neck of the woods too.~~Dee
My cucumbers are loving this rain. I have them trellised over oregano.
Hi Karen, how wonderful! Mine are just barely getting going, but I planted way late.
I love all of your Echinacea. I’ve been researching them lately. I want them in my front bed for next season and plan to buy seed to start them. It’s a very hot and sunny spot. Also, that bed gets a lot of wind. Is Echinacea okay with that, or could it be too top heavy? Thank you Dee.
And I love your chore list. It’s super helpful to have that reminder. You’re the BEST! 🙂
Hi Dana! Sorry, your comment was stuck in pending, and I was out of town. Yes, Echinacea loves hot and sunny weather. The plants don’t mind wind either. They are tough prairie plants that can adapt to almost anything. I won’t say they’re easy to grow though. It’s taken me years to get them going so don’t despair if you have some trouble. They like great drainage.~~Dee
We’re getting slammed with rain in North Texas as well. It started last September and it’s been a mess. I live in the country off a dirt road so you can imagine how sick of the rain I am too. I completely get it and the mosquitos have been horrible. Despite the weather I was able to grow some pretty amazing oriental lilies that I harvested over the weekend to enjoy in vase arrangements indoors. Trying to focus on the positives has helped me push forward.
Hi Carole, what a drag mud and mosquitoes are! I’m going to focus upon your fabulous lilies you harvested. Now, that makes me happy! Thank you for stopping by!
Wow, that is a lot of rain–especially for you! We’ve had cool, wet weather this spring. Now we’re switching over to summer weather. Yay. I hope you will dry out, too. Your garden looks amazing, as always!
Thank you sweet Beth. It was great to see you in Denver. I think we are finally drying out a bit. I hope so. I need to get caught up on my weeding.~~Dee
Yes, you are really getting slammed.
Kathy, I hate to complain, but really!~~Dee
That is a lot of rain!
Too, too much Indy-Mae!~~Dee