Pallida, I get bored when its too cold or too hot to get out of the house, but I am having a ball now. I am getting the garden ready for next year, repairing the roof, repairing fence, and a ton of other stuff waiting to get on the list. I shut down when its too wet, too hot, or too cold, there just are not enough days like we are having now.

If you will just come over here I can cure your boredom.

Larry

Larry,
No doubt you could cure my boredom with all of THOSE chores facing you! No fences, roof fine, don't veggie garden and I ripped out everything that couldn't take the heat and drought this Summer, replacing with cacti, succulents and drought tolerant perennials. Agree that weather is wonderful, but I don't sit still well. Oh dear, am I going to have to take up crocheting?! HA.

Jeanie

LOL, Jeanie! I can relate, but not yet........

I am still raising Black Swallowtails, have Monarchs in chrysalis, and I love to sit on the porch and watch the activity going on in the garden. Bees buzzing in the flowers, butterflies and moths nectaring, birds fluttering and feeding on the Sunflowers. I am so glad I had Sunflowers this year. The finches and wrens are having a blast eating and playing. I am watching seeds develop, keeping an eye on them, to collect for friends, Cosmos, Salvia darcyi, passion vine, zinnias, Golden Crownbeard, Wingstem, Gazanias, Crotolaria saggitalis or Rattlebox, Verbena bonariensis, Cleome, Fennel (Bronze and bulb) and my precious Tropical Milkweed, Plantain, False Nettle, and Flame Acanthus. So much is blooming right now - the Salvias, Cuphea 'David Verity', Morning Glories, Gerbera daisies, Dwarf Red Porterweed, Cosmos, Cleome, Gazanias, Buddleias, Asters, Golden Crownbeard, Passion flowers, Cypress vine, Zinnias, Sunflowers, Flame Acanthus, Brazilian Verbena, Wingstem, Pyramid Bush, Phlox, Sedums, Globe Amaranth. The garden is so ALIVE, the sweet scent of the Passion flowers fills the garden, and I'm thoroughly enjoying it all. These fall days will too soon merge into winter, so I don't want to be inside, that's for sure. And I am mentally planning for next year's flowers! I hate winter!!!!!

Susan

crocheting and knitting = socially sanctioned fidgeting!

another crocheter, here-- still trying to learn to like knitting!

W. O. W!, Susan. Your yard sounds beeyuuuuteeeful! Will the emerging butterflies have time to dry and strengthen their wings to fly South?
I tried SO hard to do my cottage garden thing out here, but with the intense heat and hungry deer and rabbits, I failed miserably. I have given up and given in to the elements and am now Xeriscaping, which leaves you with very little to do. My Perovskia and Gaillardia are blooming, the Lantana is fading and (finally) the grass is greening up. I, too, spend a lot of time sitting out and enjoying the pleasant temps. and watching the
birds, although my hummers went South the third week of Sept. , which is normal. I live alone, have no grandchildren, thus my gardening chores are very important to keeping my mind busy. Ditto on the hating Winter!

Merrybookwyrm (love your "handle"), my Grandmother taught me to crochet when I was a little girl, and I actually DO enjoy it. Tried knitting, but just never could get into it. Won't be long before time to buy yarn and a crochet book or two. Now, let's see, who all would like an afghan for Christmas?! Teehee!

Jeanie

Jeanie....are you growing nepeta and autumn sage? Both did pretty well for me this year. Of course I watered my head off, but those two did well. The "annual" blue sage/salvia survived well too and are blooming very nicely right now. I was out admiring my front bed this morning. Considering what a rotten summer it was, it looks pretty good right now. I have an Archduke Charles rose in there that is just blooming its head off right now. It looks so pretty with the blue sage. The gigantic lantana is the finishing touch. I'm not sure which kind I planted, but grew and grew this year! I'll have to see if I can get any good pics tomorrow.

Susan, you amaze me! I have seen so little butterfly action this year it isn't even funny. I am seeing a few monarchs now on my tithonia which are finally blooming well. I have a few cosmos finally blooming as well. That bed is finally making up for the thousands of gallons of water I dumped on it all summer!

I have noticed so much more sphinx-type moth and dragon fly action this year. That makes me happy.

Lisa,
The blue of the Catmint, the pink of the Archduke rose and the yellow of the Lantana paint a very pretty mental picture of your front flower bed! No. I have quit trying to grow roses (my favorite flower), and my blue, drought-tolerant flower of choice is the Russian Sage. My water bill doubled this Summer, and the deer stripped my roses and daylies of their buds before they could bloom, so finally threw up my hands, ripped out the thirsty, deer/rabbit-tempting plants and switched to, above, Xeriscape planting. Am anxious for next Spring to see these plants "strut" their stuff and give me some attractive blooms and structural foliage. As an old and seasoned gardener, I have learned to "go with the flow", rather than fight a losing battle. I had to learn to adapt to rural gardening and quit trying to force my "Gertrude Jekyll" gardening habits into such harsh, prairie conditions. Would love to see pix of your beds!

Jeanie

Pic of island bed that I have converted from traditional flower bed to Southwest-type bed, which, hopefully will fill in and give me some "eye candy" in time..........

Jeanie

Jeanie, That is a very pretty bed. I put in a bed yesterday. I went to get supplies to work on the roof and they had mums on sale. I have a pretty flower bed but live in a leaky house.

I hope the repair the roof today after we celebrate mom's 87th birthday.

Larry

I still do some things in my yard, but some days when I am bored I stay on the computer longer, but I also read. If you are bored now, wait until winter. Even I get cabin fever then. I have been enjoying this long fall weather, what a difference from this summer.

Garden activity for winter. LOL

Here is a link that might be useful: Music is loud.

Thanks, Larry. Send a pic of your new bed. I love everyone's pix of their flowers. Heck! Send a pic of your roof. I'm easy. HA

Jessaka, I know! I'm really dreading Winter, but am really glad that awful Summer is over, the very worst in my Oklahoma memory!

SoonerGM, Couldn't get video to download, but open to suggestions for entertainment, as I ALWAYS dread Winter and it's long, gray days.

Am looking for interesting cold hardy succulents for my SW bed, one being the "Horse Crippler" cactus which I think grows in certain areas of Oklahoma. Anyone stumble over one in their pasture?

Jeanie

I'm picking mustard greens, turnip greens,kale,okra,yellow squash and peppers. I'm planting lots of veggies in pots in my small greenhouse so I can pick salads for Christmas. It's actually a huge cold frame. I have all sorts of turnips, beets, carrots, radishes, lettuce and spinach coming up. I enjoy growing in the winter more than the summer, because everything grows better, with no pests or diseases. It also gives me a warm place to sit in the cold winter. You all should try growing veggies in the winter.

We have had our one small rain, 1.75" and I experienced walking on soft dirt. I felt like a sailor on land. it was squishy weird. Well, three days later I started getting all jumpy, stalking around not knowing what to do with my limbs. It was plain odd. I looked out over what I call my garden, that vista of grey and brown sticks standing in straw and white dirt. I realized that I was feeling the primal urge to put in a winter garden. I have sworn not to this year since we still have not much water i our rainwater tanks. I walked over to my vegetable garden and started cleaning up the old cages and string and I found tiny arugala seedlings sprouting in the dust. That was enough to send me out to get some starts of mitzuna, dino kale, swiss chard lettuce, compost . I decided to only do tiny raise bed of the whole garden. I really do not have the water to spare but I just love my winter greens.. I added coir and some vermiculite to the soil to hold onto some of that moisture. Seemed like a good idea .

No time for knitting and crocheting here. I need to start my yearly 2 acre land trimming. I still have not burned last years 13 huge piles of brush because of the endless fire ban. This year the trimming is up a gulch. It will be tough. God knows where I am going to put this brush. The 5 acre field up front is full.

Bored in fall? Never! Its my favorite gardening time.

Do those gelatin crystal things you add to potting soil that soak up water help or is coir better? Sounds better. I have enough to do in the garden for three people and am so busy I can barely breathe. The weather is gorgeous and I try to get out and do as much as possible. I'm sowing seeds for next spring, weeding (and weeding) collecting, drying, labeling and storing seeds, trimming tree branches, thinning out, cleaning my seed starting and small plants nursery area, editing plants in the ground to better spots, raking, digging etc etc.

Looking at that picture up there, isn't it too bad theres no sunflowers anywhere? They are so gorgeous right now along the roadsides and in fields. Don't think the drought had any adverse effects on them. I saw many thick drifts of Maximillian Sunflowers - thick mass of yellow with butterflies. Something purple is blooming heavily, I need to stop and check what and others. Maybe hiking and collecting seeds to get some color?

Agree on Sunflowers. Tried, really. I did! Planted seeds last Spring, and something ate every little cotyledon that popped up it's head. Probably " Thumpers"..........
Don't think here in 7b we will have killing frost this week, but taking precautions. Have Desert Willow and Eve's Necklace seedlings inside on window sill. Have watered everything, just in case......

Takes more than a packet of seeds, if thats what you mean by planting some seeds. A couple grocery bags stuffed full of seeds collected in the wild after they go to seed in fall is more like it, some for the birds but some should make it. The Maximillian are the ones that look like Hollyhocks with lance shaped leaves and are perennial. $3.00 per pack at P of the SW but you can collect them for free. The others types are annuals.

If you get a stand of the Maximillian, you will have it from here on out, rabbits or no. We have rabbits everywhere and yet I am seeing just as many sunflowers. I'd look for some small plants as well to transplant. You always have to over plant stuff like this in the beginning, like nature does. Theres lots of plants you can do this with for color all season if you are going native.

Jeanie, because you said you were easy I climbed up on the roof and took a picture. As you can see, it is in as bad of shape as I am. I am saving my pennies for a metal roof.

Being as your are so bored you can click on the picture and see the bed I started Saturday afternoon and my thirsty fall garden. The flower bed will be about 5 or 10 times the size it is now and bordered with large rocks, if I can figure out a way to lift and move the rocks.

Larry

Gracious, Larry,
Did not intend for you to go skyward, risking life and limb, but yep, a new metal roof would be nice. What color?
Looks like you have some nice dark soil there, unlike my clay/caliche. I have to haul around the larger rocks with my "dolly" or two-wheeler. I'm so stubborn that, if I can get the rock off the ground, I WILL move it! Have you decided what plants you are putting in this new bed? Thanks for pix.......

Jeanie

Janet,
Honestly did not know that we have perennial sunflowers in OK. Now, there is something I can look for. Are the seeds anything like the Black Oil Sunflower seeds that are so expensive and sold as bird feed? Planting a field of those would be both attractive and economical!

Jeanie

Are you joking? the birds would certainly appreciate the free meal.

Collecting from the wild can be a good activity and fun.

Helianthus annuus. Grows wild on the sides of the road. No, they aren't like the commercial varieties. They are more like the seed heads on coneflowers. Surely you have seen them, they are everywhere. The other kind needs to be planted like a crop, sown in the ground in spring.

Helianthus maximiliani. Perennial type, 5 to 8ft, I see them everywhere each fall.

Jeanie, I don't know about the color of the roof, I like earth tones. I hope the new roof is a long ways down the road.

The soil is not good. The soil in the pictures has been amended a lot. The native soil is clay and silt hard pan, but has a high mineral count. I use no fertilizer other than a little nitrogen, but I MUST have organic matter or the soil gets as hard as a rock.

I don't know what plants I will have in the flower bed. This has been the third summer that my wife has not been able to do much outside and it seems to be depressing her, so this bed is more for her. I know she wont be able to do a lot, but she need to find that out for herself.

The rocks are over 1/2 mile away in a creek bed, there is no way I can move them with a 2 wheeler. At this time I plan on pulling them up the hill with a winch after I build a crate around them to protect the moss. This rock project will have to sit on the back burner for a while. I hate rocks, but the woman I love likes them.

Can you can tell who mows, weedeats, and repairs the mower? In case you cant tell, its the one that hates rocks.

Larry

One who hates rocks,
They are a pain to work with because of weight, but really DO make a bed look pretty and natural, besides holding in dirt and keeping out creeping grasses, etc.
Every time I drive through the Arbuckles, I want to stop and pick up some of the chunks of sandstone that have broken off and fallen from the sides of the mountains, but most are huge chunks and completely out of my weight-lifting capabilities. Is this winch attached to your PU, and does the
PU have a power tailgate? I'm sure, with help and in time, you will get this chore accomplished.
Believe me, can relate to concrete soil. I have wanted, so badly, to plant some nice shade trees on this property, but would take a tracter and auger to dig holes, neither of which I have. Oh well, we just can't have everything we want, can we? HA............

Jeanie, the pickup is a 97 Isuzu, its made of beer cans and plastic, it has a ladder rack but nothing else. If I cant get Madge's mind headed in another direction I will have to make a mount for the winch and hook it to a tree. Then get the pickup close enough to attach jumper cables to the winch. I have a boat trailer winch and a one ton chain hoist I can use to lift the rocks. I could borrow a tractor but that usually means the owner will help, and I am very picky, if I am going to this much trouble I sure don't want the rocks scuffed up. I don't care if it takes a week to move them.

Really, I don't want any help. You said you were stubborn, well I am also. My Doctor told me about 8 years ago to always keep both feet on the ground, it seems as tho the problem that has taken away most of my hearing has also left me a little unstable on my feet, but I have built or rebuilt five buildings alone since then. The largest being a 24 x 40 pole barn.

Larry

Larry,
You know? Except for a few health problems, one nice thing about being older is that we can take all the time we want for our "projects"! Just be careful and don't hurt your back! Sounds to me like you are pretty active, and that is very important. That is why I'm saying I can't handle sitting still for very long--------boring, and your brain becomes jelly. HA.
Since we have been talking, a cold front has blown into South Central OK and the temp, has dropped to 59 degrees. Supposed to be 47 degrees by morning. Hope we don't have a Winter as harsh as the Summer we just had. I was born and raised in this state and NEVER remember a Summer like this one. I had plants burn to a crisp, with me watering most every day.

Jeanie

Jeanie, My outside thermometer says 46 now.

I do try to stay active but I get very little done. That is why I picked the handle "Slowpoke".

Rained last night and the roof leaked. Back to the drawing board.

Off to FT. Smith to take step-dad for Chemo.

I take everything slow and easy.

Larry

I don't have much time any more to be bored. But then I also don't have a yard right now... instead, I have a job.

At least, I get paid for my time there. LOL

I loved the yard pictures Larry, and I loved the flowers opening up in the video.

AWESOME, both!

Moni

I have a stand of Maximilian Sunflower in the yard and they are gorgeous. For some reason, mine bloom early and are done by September pretty much. The annual Sunflowers take over and are gorgeous. The Sunflowers came with bird feed, with smaller flowers than the newer hybrids or giants, much branching habit, and the finches LOVE them. The Carolina wrens cover the ground beneath looking for dropped seed - so cute!

Most of my fall flowers are yellow. I also have Verbesina encelioides blooming its head off. The migrating Monarchs have taken full advantage of the Sunflowers, V. encelioides, and V. alternifolia that is blooming right now. I wanted to acquire the V. virginica as well, but may not have time. I would love to see the frost flowers on it.

The Maypops are also blooming heavily and I have fruit! The Salvias are truly beautiful this time of year, including 'Lady in Red', S. darcyi, having some of the largest blooms in the genus. The Tropical Milkweed is blooming heavily and I hope to get seeds to save. The Asters are in full bloom, A oblongifolius, and a foreigner, A. tartaricus 'Jindai', along with the Blue Mistflower, Coniclinum coelistinum fka Eupatorium coelistinum. Flame Acanthus, Anisacanthus quadrifidus var. wrightii, has bloomed heavily since mid-summer, and seed heads are appearing. I need to figure out when to collect them - before they burst and send seeds everywhere. This is a Texas Native and very drought tolerant, and hardy to zone 7 at least. The hummers loved it! There is just nothing bad to say about this plant. The foliage looks good all season, no bare knees or nothin. I grew it from seed and the 1st year plants made it thru this last very cold winter.

The Dicliptera suberecta is another new to me plant that I hope to overwinter with protection. Love the orange red blooms and grey foliage. It is blooming again - it bloomed all summer, took a rest in September and started up again. Bustani says hardy to zone 7, we'll see about this Uruguay native. Another Acanthus family member.

So I am not a strictly Oklahoma natives grower.

My new passion next year is going to be Japanese Morning Glories or Asagao.

Susan

I would love to get a large stand of the "Max" sunflowers growing on my acreage, so will be pulling off the road when I am out and about and harvesting seeds. Truly thought all the sunfowers around here were annual. Probably be a while before they are ready to be gathered. Don't know why, but very few wildflowers and NO sunflowers out here near me.
I suspect the heat discouraged the few wildflowers I have seen out here, Achillea, Castilleja, Horsemint, Liatris, Oenothera, Ratibida, Sisyrinchium,
(only a few or NONE if these this year), etc. One of the things that has been disappointing about being in this rural area is that I have a "Neatnik" neighbor with lots of farm equipment who mows the road all around me and am close enough to town that the county sends out mowers and road maintenance people periodically who ALSO mow the road before the poor flowers have time to go to seed. I have tried broadcasting wildflower seed on my property with very poor results. Have no way to turn this brick-like soil to accept the seed, so probably, it blows away or the birds get it. If I can get enough (lots) of SF seed and broadcast them, MAYBE, SOME of them would actually sprout and get started. After all, no-one goes out and cultivates the roadsides. Cactusgarden says it takes lots and lots of seed, as in nature. This is my first experience in "going wild", compared to traditional city gardening. To be totally honest, used to be interested in ONLY beautiful blooming shrubs and perennials. I'm adapting. Just don't have much experience. Your beds sound really lovely, and you, obviously, have LOTS of experience!........

Jeanie

I got three seedheads from some Maximillian Sunday on the side of the road by Edmond, mostly they are still in full flower here in the city, about midway through. I don't grow only Oklahoma natives either, I grow Southwestern natives. Just got 9 new packs of seed from Plants of the Southwest and some others in a trade from a guy who owns property in Arizona. One is Great Coneflower. Do you have any experience with it? Sounds like the butterflies would like it.

I'm trying Feather Dalea for the third time. If I keep trying one day I will have to finally get one. Also, I'm sowing Eriogonum corymbosum (buckwheat), Rough Menodora, Mentzelia decapetala,

Shrubs: Little Leaf Sumac, Pale Wolfberry, 4 Wing Saltbush, and Desert Holly.

Also Bird of Paradise, Cat Claw Acacia, Aibika, Night Blooming Hesperaloe, Our Lords Candle Yucca.

I planted 3 Flame Acanthus early August after reading that post you wrote about it offering to share seeds, I dug out the seeds I got a year ago and decided to replant it. I think I will need to bring them in during the coldest months since they are pretty small still. I may leave one outside since you said yours wintered and put some oak leaves on it when it gets really cold. I have back up seeds in case I need them. You might try putting a paper bag over your plant when its ready to explode the seeds. I read that somewhere. Wantanamara in Texas said she had hundreds of them coming up everywhere one year. I was scooping seeds off the parking lot at Will Rogers Park where I found mine. They sprouted very easily so.......be cautious.

Mine are planted at the edge of my driveway, so hopefully I won't have too many self-seeding plants come up. Last year's seedlings were only about 10" tall when winter arrived and I worried they wouldn't make it. Also, they are planted on the Northwest corner of the house. They leafed out pretty early, too, in spring this year. The stems are almost white, a very light tan at least. So kind of pretty in the winter landscape. This year they reached about 4' tall, so very fast growing. Early foliage in spring is a lime green that darkens with age, but always looks nice, which I really like. It probably is too late to plant them out. Probably could winter over up next to the house, mulched well, where they will get some warmth during winter.

Oh, I LOVE that Giant Coneflower, Cactusgarden! I am envious you have it. I planted a Rayless Gaillardia this year, and it did very well for me. It is very fragrant, also called Perfume Balls. Can't wait to see what it does next year. Also planted Gaillardia 'Oranges and Lemons'. Have heard it is difficult to overwinter successfully, and that the secret is to not deadhead, which I haven't. We will wait and see.

I hope my little Ptelea trifoliata (Hop Tree, Wafer Ash tree) made it thru this summer. It lost all foliage, but think I see green leaves beginning to sprout. This tree is in the Rutaceae or Citrus family and is a larval host plant for Giant Swallowtails. It is a small tree, can be pruned as a shrub, native in Oklahoma, and way under utilized in as understory tree/shrub.

Susan

I figure since I only want one acanthus plant and have three up I can trial one outside under mulch. the gravel I have keeps plants warm and dry around the base in full sun and seems to extend my zone just a bit. Glad you told me the mature size on that.

I got the Giant Coneflower seeds in a trade, had never heard of it before. When I looked it up it looked like it has sort of blueish leaves. Rayless is the only Gallardia I like. The deep green foliage and bright yellow and red flowers clash with my garden on the other kinds. I got a free packet of seeds from Plants of the SW and guess what it was? Gallardia pulchella. Just about anything else in the catalog would have been more exciting so I have a pack to give away.

For very early pollinators it seems like it might be good to look into shrubs. I used to have Wintersweet and that was about as early as I have seen, was always swarming with bees and others in late winter. I have something that came in a mixed seed packs I ordered a couple of years ago from Arizona. Various mixes like Tucson, Catalina Wildflower Mix, Sonoran Desert, Backyard Full of Butterflies and 4 others that were very inexpensive ($2.00/pack, each had lots of seed) and had some interesting unusual types. Some I wintersowed in pots and others I broadcast. Got some little surprises that next year and tried to figure out what they were which is fun for me.

They were put out by a place called Arizona Natives that is a conservation outfit that sells seed for fund raising. The back of the label says WILD SEED out of Tempe, AZ. I don't know the website but you might type in this information and see if you can bring it up. There is some kind of plant I have that comes up very early, like late Feb/early March, each spring now and blooms yellow, low growing with blue foliage, no idea what it is but reseeds well can comes back each year and dies off early summer with round seed pods all over it. A Penstemon as well that blooms just about as early that has waxy leaves and screaming hot pink flowers. I think its Desert Penstemon and I ended up with three. There was some kind of low growing verbena with rough small leaves that bloomed very early and long.