Hi Susan,
This is the year of the strange, so I am not surprised. My plants have done virtually the same thing. I had daturas blooming in April. April! And then there's the 4 o'clocks which usually bloom in July--and began blooming in May. Everything is tursy-turvy, upside-down and turned around. Even the few peaches that the wind did not blow off the trees are going to be ripe in a day or too, and they usually ripen around Father's Day.

I have a lot of mid-summer to late-summer flowers setting blooms and, because the spring flowers bloomed late, they are STILL blooming. It is crazy. I am not sure I know what the explanation is either other than weather stress.

Often, such bizarre out-of-sequence events are drought-related. You know, for example, if it gets really, really dry some flowering trees go dormant and drop leaves in the heat, and then rain falls in late summer, and they mysteriously bloom and leaft out again in the fall. Of course, we know that is because the drought-induced dormancy affects them the same as winter dormany. This year, though, we can't blame it on drought. Still, I think it has to be weather/stress-related.

Dawn

Here in the Ozarks, My Sedum is ready to bloom a month early and my mums too. I've been thinking "strange weather."

Oh, gosh, I'm glad it's not just me.

Dawn, I have seen that happen with the Bradford Pears. All of the leaves drop from drought during the summer, and then start back up with blooms in the fall. Oklahoma has weird things that happen, but I have NEVER had my mums start blooming this early. The solidago may be an early bloomer.

When I purchased it last year at Precure, it was blooming in April. Now, that's not too surprising when you purchase nursery propagated plants because they come from warmer climates usually, or are nursery grown, and a lot of them are in flower when they shouldn't be. However, I guess they catch the customer's eye when in flower, and then the poor thing (if they don't research the purchase) thinks it's going to bloom at the same time next year.......not!

I don't think one of my Tithonia seedlings is gonna make it. A friend gave me two seedlings because I simply cannot make the seed germinate! But, one of them looks very limp like it's dying, so we'll have to see.

My moonflowers are still very small (maybe have 2 true leaves). I hope they grow enough to get some blooms before frost! LOL!

My datura is just now getting ready to open blooms. But, I'm a bit later than you, Dawn. I love them and the moths love them, too. I have reseeding cypress vine, but it's not going very fast either, nor is my Christmas cassia. The Wild Senna (hebecarpa) is about 3' tall.

When does button bush flower? I don't think I'm gonna get blooms this year (2nd). But another friend on the butterfly forum said that his didn't bloom until the 3rd year.

Guess we might as well settle into another strange year here in Oklahoma.

Susan

Susan,

Mine start blooming in May or June and bloom on and off all summer. I haven't been down to the swamp lately so I don't know if they have started yet.

Dawn

Susan,

My mums are already blooming. I have never paid close attention to when they have bloomed in the past, but I think it is usually later than this, I remember everything else being in bloom last year, when they finally bloomed. Sheri

Yeah, Sheri, mine usually bloom in early fall. What a wacky year we're having.

Susan

Here's another wacky occurence in our garden, besides the mums blooming: our Easter lillies are just now blooming. Big beautiful flowers, very healthy plants, but about 2 months late.

My mums would be blooming if I hadn't just cut them back. I am trying to be diligent this year about cutting them back twice (Memorial Day and July 4) so they will not be all sprawley in the fall. If I don't cut back, I usually get a spring bloom and and fall bloom from my mums.

My easter lilies are just starting to bloom now too...but that is normal is my garden. I've never had them bloom in April, the foliage isn't even up then.

Lisa

You know, I have never pinched these mums I have because they form a nice round mound and are never sprawly. The blooms are small, but a lovely magenta color. I don't know the cultivar because I purchased them at one of the roadside stands we have at various corners around the metro in the fall.

In fact, they overwintered in their pots and I decided to go ahead and plant it the following year. I've had it growing at the base of my passion and clematis vines for about 5 years now.

Don't have Easter Lilies, but do have Asiatics - one is Latvia and the other is Oklahoma City. I also have a solid brilliant orange one (not what I ordered, but still lovely) that is about to bloom.

Won't be long before the Lilium lancifolium 'Flore Pleno' blooms. It is spreading nicely, too. I can share with you Lisa if you don't have it. It's a double tiger.

I have an orienpet with bloom pods on it called Touching, and another oriental that I think is Golden Elegance. The Tiger Babies are in bloom now as well. They are a peachy color. The white Navarro has pods as well as Tom Pouce.

My Casablancas died out this year. Don't know why. But I love the fragrance. They are one of the sweetest smelling, so if you don't like the fragrance, don't get it.

When someone mentioned them smelling like a "funeral" home, I thought of the Easter Lilies. The flowers that always remind me of funerals, though, are gladiolas.

Susan