Shade in the summer heat. Grow faster, little trees, grow faster...

Rain, rain, pleeeeeze more rain!

I've become a seed addict -- anything that I can grow from seeds that will self-sow and be beautiful in bloom, then easy to pull afterwards wins my vote.

Can't have too much of these:

nigella
larkspur
cornflowers
california poppies
echinacea
ageratum
alyssum
dusty miller
milkweed
lavender
sedum (pinch back and make more)
sempervivum (pinch and plant)
petunias (yes, they look marvelous mixed with my perennial heliotrope)
rudbeckia hirta (want to try other varieties; fulgida doesn't do well in humidity for me)

I rely upon monarda so much. I find 'Rapsberry Wine' and 'Blue Stockings' to be really tough in the drought. 'Jacob Cline' wants water and afternoon shade.

Next year -- I want to have tall snapdragons again. Mine finally died out this past winter and I want to replenish. The open butterfly blooms on some new varieties look interesting.

I'm adding more of the native varieties of liatris, joe pye, echinacea, milkweed.

With our hot summers and drought for the last few years, the survival of plants is so important to me. I cannot waste money on pampered perennials. I need tough perennials which means I don't grow the most exotic or "collector" plants (although I drool over them and covet, too!).

Cameron

Self control! LOL

Every summer, I end up with a porch full of annuals and shrubs that I buy at great prices, but have no where to plant. Eventually, I'll get them in the ground, but in my defense, if I wait until the beds are ready...there are no plants left. Many garden centers slow down their shipments in mid-summer, so by fall, there are very little, if any, plants left.

Other than that (and needing a separate garden for all my vegetables...maybe next year) it's been a good summer and the weeds are a little more under control. Still a work in progress :)

T*I*M*E

There just aren't enough hours in the day/week/season to tend my garden + do all the usual, unavoidable chores. I'm grateful we had good, soaking rain frequently enough this year I only had to water for a couple of weeks in July. August has brought several inches of rain already with more in the forecast. I winter sowed too many containers (stop laughing--it's addictive) and every morning/afternoon as I pass by them give encouraging greetings to my 150+ perennials & shrubs in pots waiting for permanent homes. Only a few will be so lucky this year. The rest will have to ride out the cold months tucked inside storage bins in my garage. If I had more time to spend in my garden, they'd all get planted before November 1st.

Wow gardenweed, you have less time than me! 150 containers wins the prize. I just put out a few of my WS containers, and if I'm not finished then I'm doggone close. I don't enjoy having all those containers sitting around with stunted plants, so next year I hope I can control the WS more, maybe curb the addiction!

Anyway, I agree with you. Time is what I need. And a plan, a better plan.

Plantwise, I don't want more of anything as much as I want to find a new something. I'd love to find one of the Anthemis tinctoria Dyer's Chamomile/Golden Marguerite varieties with pale yellow flowers, like EC Buxton or Moonlight. They seem impossible to find, and I'd rather have seed than plants, if it reproduces by seed.

The one thing I want more of is Shasta Snow Lady. Very small and petite Shasta Daisy. I like it! Only a couple plants survived my first WS experience, and I had them in an area of the garden where they got roughed up by animals and such. I should be glad they came back at all. Now they've been moved and will hopefully expand their territory.

I want more plants that can survive with just a little watering. It is predicted that we will have another dry year in 2012.

What I do not want are any more plants in baskets or pots, especially ferns.

Planting space. I can't dig up the grass as fast as I can buy/propagate plants.

Coleus. There are a thousand coleus but the stores only ever have 2 or 3. Yawn!

Regarding container plants. I'm switching over to "permanent" container plantings and am very happy with:

succulents - sedum, sempervivum, agave work well in pots with minimal care (almost no care except moving them to a more sheltered spot against the house in the winter). I can go on vacation and not have to worry about watering these. In fact, I only water those if we go more than 3-4 weeks without an inch of rain -- including 100 degree days.

Lavender - I'm having great success with lavender in containers IF I put rock around the top of the soil. Seldom water at all.

Juniper - a great container shrub that requires little water with similar requirements for lavender and succulents.

Shady spot - cast iron plant can't be beat! Little water required. Only problem is in winter, I have to move it from my porch (sun in winter, shade in summer) or it will get sun burned.

I've also got rosemary in a big concrete planter, but I'm going to take seeds from my yucca and throw in there to see if I can fill it up with yucca for more architectural impact (miscanthus cosmopolitan backs it up, planted in the ground behind the planter).

Cameron

PS -- maybe I should have posted this on 'garden secrets' thread!

What I do not want are any more plants in baskets or pots, especially ferns.

Container plants are a pain to keep watered. I don't mind it when the temps are mild, but that's not often down here.

Energy...and rain.

Ditto on Rain...and a bit cooler please .
kay

Vegies. I think I would like more vegies. And more space then more money to spend on more plants to fill up that more space and create beautiful gardens!!!! :)

Longer growing season. The past couple of years there have been freezes in the middle of June and Aug. That slows downs my veggie plants. I havent been able to grow a red tomato since I've lived here.

Cameron...I had that yucca idea this year, too. I get babies, so I dug one up and put in a pot. If it overwinters and does well, I'll put more in pots. I like them for winter interest.

I want more shrubs. Easier maintenance, offers color and texture, and most have 3 or 4 season interest.

Anyone who wants yucca can come over my place. BYOPA--Bring Your Own Pick-Axe.

I want more spring and early summer bloomers, like foxglove and campanula and columbine. My late summer garden is lush but I need more color earlier. Soooo...I will be starting seeds in my basement this winter.

-anitamo, I would love to know next year if you have luck overwintering yucca in a pot (what kind by the way?). I've been thinking it would be neat to have a tall pot of 'Color Guard' Yucca somewhere in my backyard...
CMK

Like many of you, I am going for a more Xeric type garden - at least plants that don't need to be babied and work me into an early grave, and then after all the hard work and expense, they still look like crap or they die anyway.

I have much the same lists as Cameron, including:
Hardy Shrub roses & Ramblers, Evergreens (Junipers, Boxwood, &etc), more Yuccas, Prickly Pear Cactus, Ornamental grasses, Euphorbias, Prairie-type flowers (Echinacea, Rudbeckia, Gaillardia, Liatris, &etc), Spireas, Holly, Abelia, Forsythia, Barberry, Eponymous, Sedum, Succulents, Coleus, Pentas, Periwinkles, Sweet Allysum, 4 O'clocks, Sages, Helenium (Oh, I want to get these if I can find them), Daylilies, Irises, Zinnias, Herbs of most types, and anything that can take the toughest and most extreme of conditions are the best for me here in Central Okie high on this South-facing rock.
I cannot grow continue to try to maintain plants native to moist climates. It is just unsustainable!

I plan to add more of the above type flowers and plants and phase out the exotics. I'll just have to enjoy the gardens of those of you who have those lush, woodland gardens that I so dearly love.

Since my garden peaks here in the Spring, hardy roses, like Rambler roses are among those that do the best here and can take what this climate dishes out. I would like to have a start of someone's Veilchenblau rambler rose to get going, if anyone has one that they would be willing to share. (will pay postage. GottaGarden can vouch for me.)

And BTW, I have two nice gallon-sized pots of my all-time favorite rambler rose, Rosa, Ispahan. I started them for two people on our forum, but can't remember who wanted them, for gosh sakes. I can mail them to you, bare-root, anytime, so please let me know. They bloomed in their pots this past spring! They are ready and waiting for you. :)

Our Heat Advisory was finally been lifted! The Heat Dome that had stalled over this state since late May, finally moved off. There is not supposed to be any more of the triple-digit temps, at least not day after day after day, and the rain has returned. A cold front moved down into the state two days ago and ahead of the front, storms developed creating some very bad straight-wind gusts up to 85 MPH that did wide-spread damage. It moved across the state in a diagonal manner with the wind gusts in front like an enormous bulldozer, pushing everything in its path over. But then the temps dropped 30 degrees in two days! We are getting gobs of rain. It's 1:30 p.m. and only 72 degrees. AWESOME! Everything is greening back up. Yeah! I even have several roses trying to bloom again and other flowers making new. I am so relieved. Didn't realize just how exhausted I was until this morning. I am too tired to do anything. My arthritis is giving me fits and my whole body hurts, but I am, nonetheless, one HAPPY GARDENER!

Why don't they sell these in this country. I mean, the original plant was a Native. It was taken back to England and cultivated into an awesome array of colors.
Why aren't these being sold here, and if they are, why aren't they being sold here in Oklahoma? At least I haven't found any.

These are a perfect flower for Prairie Cottage Gardens or anyone just wanting unbelievable HOT colors without fussy, pampering.

Here is a link that might be useful: Heleniums galore!

Good question, Annie... Love the Jam Tart.

CMK...just the regular run of the mill green one. I wish my Color Guard would produce some off shoots, but it's barely gotten bigger in the eight years since I've had it. I'll let you know about the overwintering. What I like about that idea is it will add some height to the container and texture, (and heft) then I can use less of the other annuals to fill the pot. Plus, when I get tired of it, I can just toss it. They are so hard to get rid of in the ground.

Vegetables. And rain.

Veronicas. They performed well through all the drought and extreme heat, with not that much extra water. Hardy Geraniums, ditto. A couple more crape myrtles, they keep on going and don't seem to care that it's 100+ degrees and hasn't rained all summer. Pasque flower, it seems to love the heat. More viburnums. Lots more asters. They are still green and look great, in spite of the fact that they bloomed in July instead of waiting until fall. I cut them back, hope they bloom again in Sept. Lets see, what else?

A few more conifers for winter interest. More lilies, Asiatic, and especially some more Black Dragon and African King. I love those big ones!

And more annuals, cleome, zinnias, marigolds, cosmos to plug into my big herb garden for pretty.

And of course, more hostas. I have a list.

More time and energy during good weather so I can move a whole bunch of stuff around. And money so I can buy some more plants - and finally cut down the overgrown pine tree at the corner of the house so I can finish the front border.

And less mosquitoes!!! It is finally beautiful outside, but I can't bear to be out and constantly swatting at the mosquitoes! I finally broke down and sprayed the lawn area, but not the veggies or the purple coneflowers, so working in the garden I'm still dodging the varmints.

Sedums (I used these to edge my containers and I'm so happyfied by their nubbly little textures and such, I'm going to keep trying to collect different varieties. Also, I was absolutely in love with my Cranberry cosmos this year, so Id like to get a double white to add to the fluff. Lastly, dwarf items for all season interest in my containers. I'm hoping for dwarf crepe myrtles (they've been sold out for 2 seasons by the time I get there, and shorter buddleias) :)

Thanks anitamo! I was thinking the same thing about the texture. I love the agaves in pots the magazines show, but know those wouldn't survive outdoors here or even being over wintered indoors. Yucca is a good alternative! Glad to hear your 'Color Guard' is hardy and doesn't spread too much (not that my green one does where I have it...). Hope your potted fellow does well ;-)
CMK

Energy and a good right knee. May get a new knee this winter and lack of pain might increase the energy as well.

I found something I want to get. I didn't mention this, but my Lilacs have always been very drought hardy. I want to get a new one - Take a look through the LINK below.
Does anyone on here grow this beauty and does it really look like this? Gorgeous!

Here is a link that might be useful: Sensation Lilac

No#1 is.... more get up and go :). #2 is all my flower beds cleaned up and maintained throughout the year. #3 more rhodies for the bed between the lathhouse and garden shed, I'll take out most of the perennial, either move them or give em' away, plant rhodies, mulch and this bed will be an easy do each spring.

Annette

That sounds lovely Annette! With your garden layout, I can picture how that will look. Cool and fresh and green with big beautiful flowers. What colors?

Annie, I already have a some in the bed in question, Virginia Richards( soft pink fading to a creamy yellow), September Song(peachy apricot), President Roosevelt(red/white with variegated leaves) and Warlock(deep red purple) hasn't bloomed yet. I think I'll look for a mauve and a deep pink for starters. This bed wanders beneath a very large Robinia tree so it's quite shaded for most of the day. I'm just trying to cut down on the work as I get older or approach ancient, take your pick :).

Annette

I want more wildflowers...wildflowers are actually how I started my garden and now I hardly have any at all.

I think they got bulldozed at some point in time.

My list would echo Camerons - after two years of heat and drought I am totally done with fussy perennials - I have gotten over the 'need' to have gardens like all the ones I see on the internet and magazines. I need to just concentrate on what grows for me with minimum care and gives me time to actually sit back and enjoy. I would like to add more agastaches and have larger drifts of them - they do well for me. I am also going to do more larger containers.

I have found that gardening is an evolving process depending on current climate conditions and health/age - both are changing for me so I will adapt :) .....

Lynne

I was so in love with agastaches (Heatwave) last year after finding them dirt cheap at Lowe's. Bought more from Lazy S's Farm this spring. They all did fine during the drought, but once the rain came everything changed. Seriously re-thinking that one.

Also not thrilled with Angelonia. It's been blooming all summer, but isn't wowing me. If some overwinter, great ... if not, no loss.

Want to add Shasta Daisies 'Becky' and False Aster 'Blue Star' this fall.

Sunflowers. Not the giant ones, but the smaller heads like
lemon queen, evening sun, etc.. The goldfinches are the only
birds small enough to get the seeds. I love to watch them
in my garden.

He's a little scruffy from the rain, but this is why I want more
sunflowers next year.

I'll get more portulaca and dusty miller for the beds. I'll have more Columbines, peony poppies, and perennial blue flax as I let them go to seed. I like those hardy plants that require little care and propagate themselves.

I will again take cuttings of my Walker's Low as that worked well this year - I can't get enough of that plant.

Will decide during the depths of winter snows which other plants I want/want more of!