AWESOME new pics, Mike, so fun to see. It's great to have some plants that LOVE our blast furnace summers isn't it? You've got a ton of eye candy going on there. Great stuff! I posted a separate thread on crinum lilies, but just for fun here's 'Ellen Bosanquet' in bloom this morning. Plus good old "climbing snapdragon", Asarina scandens still flowering in full hot sun on a metal obelisk that gets insanely hot in full sun in summer. Asarina doesn't seem to mind at all (available in pinks, reds, whites, and this purple-blue): Not blooming, but here's a fun 7 foot tall spineless prickly pear, Opuntia ficus-indica, that I started from a single pad six years ago. Wilson the tennis ball is wedged in there to show size, LOL. This is looking ESE in my little garden. Happy gardening all! Grant

Well, it depends on how far west you are. The farther west you are, the fewer trees that will do really, really well. I've linked a publication that lists some trees recommended for Oklahoma. If you are in extreme southwestern Oklahoma or extreme western OK, you might want to check with your county agriculture extension agent to see what grows well there. Trees that are generally recommended for NE Oklahoma, for example, probably are considerably different from ones that would grow where you are. (Considerably different soils and rainfall.) Here in south-central Oklahoma, I spent time studying and identifying the native trees before I decided what to plant in our landscape. Many of the trees that grow well in south-central OK probably would grow well in southwestern OK, too, though they might not get as large. Here's some trees that are native or naturalized in southern OK: SHADE TREES: Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) Texas Ash (Fraxinus tesensis) Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa) aka as mossy-cup oak because of the mossy fringe around the edge of its huge acorns) prefers moist forest-type areas, but is growing well in our thick red clay soil with a pH similar to yours, and it has huge leaves. It is a slow grower the first couple of years, but then really takes off. Post Oak (Quercus stellata) Very solid-looking trees with fairly short stubby branches Shumard Red Oak (Quercus shumardii) LOVELY red fall color Kentucky Coffee Tree American Elm (Ulmus americana) larger leaves, long-lived Cedar Elm (Ulmus crassifolia) smaller leaves Texas Persimmon (Diospyros texana) Wooly Bumelia Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) VERY adaptable and almost impossible to kill(invasive water guzzlers) Willows and Cottonwoods--on creekbanks and pond edges Honey Locust Pecan (Carya illinoiensis)(esp. in river bottom areas and in deep soil) Sycamore Osage Orange Honey Mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa)(deep-rooted and very drought tolerant but only make light shade and I don't know if they are available commercially) Catalpa UNDERSTORY TREES: Possumhaw Holly (Ilex decidua) (shrubby tree) Redbud (Cercis canadensis) Rough-leaf Dogwood Mexican Plum (Prunus mexicana) Rusty Blackhaw Viburnum (Viburnum rufidulum) OTHER TREES THAT MIGHT GROW WELL IN SW OK: Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis) NOT a true willow and NOT actually a desert tree, but it does best in really well-drained soil. Very drought-tolerant and has few pests that bother it. The flowers are tubular and quite lovely...a pale lavender on the native one. One named selection, "Bubba", has flowers that are a dark wine-purple and is more compact than the native. Other selections include "White Storm" and "Burgundy Storm". This is a member of the same family as the trumpet creeper vine. Chitalpa "Pink Dawn" (Chitalpa tashkentensis "Pink Dawn") is a hybrid of catalpa and chilopsis. Very well-adapted to hot, dry climates. Crape Myrtle (Lagerstroemia)--Deciduous, flowers, needs irrigation in dry spells. Comes in all sizes, from small weeping ones to very tall tree-like ones. Southern Wax Myrtle (Myrica cerifera) Actually a very tall shrub, but can be pruned up tree-form. Tolerates almost any soil conditions, but may need irrigation in dry periods. Handles slow-draining soil really well. Chaste Tree (Vitex Agnus-Castus) A tough deciduous shrubby-type tree that can eventually get about 20 feet tall. Will spread out pretty wide, but you can prune it up into a tree form. Flowers are generally blue, but there are pink-flowered ones as well. Butteflies love them. Very drought tolerant. Windmill Palm (Trachycarpus fortunei) One of the more cold-hardy palms, but may not survive in SW OK. Survives without irrigation once established except during very dry spells. If you are very far west, you might need trees that are more commonly found on the High Plains of West Texas, and there aren't a lot that I can think of off the top of my head. Your annual rainfall as well as how much you are willing to irrigate will help you determine what to plant. If you get 30" of rain a year, or you're willing to irrigate up to that level, you have more options. If you get 25" of rain a year, you have significantly fewer choices. When annual rainfall drops below 30" per year, natural woodlands begin to disappear. If you soil is sandy to sandy-clay, that is better because water soaks in deeper to get down into the root zone of trees. If your soil is very thick, very dense clay, it will be hard to water trees deeply so you'll need trees than can thrive on little water. Mesquite, mentioned on one of the lists above, would be one tree that could handle very little rainfall. Mohr Oak (Quercus mohriana) aka Shin Oak This is a small live oak that is very drought tolerant (but not as drought tolerant as Vasey Oak). It grows in sand, sandy loam, caliche clay and on limestone and needs well-drained soil. Is a small tree, only getting 10 to 20 feet tall at maturity. It likes to sucker and form colonies. You can get a larger tree by pruning to a central and leader and letting the tree put all its energy into that one trunk. In very sandy soil, it can stay as short as 3' at maturity. Western Soapberry (Sapindus drummondii) In very dry soil it will mature at 10-15 feet but in wetter conditions it can get as tall as 40 to 50 feet. Has lovely fall color (yellow) and the berries (amber-colored) are very attractive to bluebirds. Prairie flame-leaf Sumac (Rhus lanceolata) aka Lanceleaf Sumac. Grows well on limestone and in calcareous soils, including sand, loam, clay, and caliche, but it needs to be well-drained soil. Provides very vivid fall color and tends to get 10' to 20' tall depending on the annual rainfall. Makes a gorgeous contrast to western soapberry in the fall. It also provides food for a lot of bees, mammals and birds which can be very important in western parts of the state where food can be scarce. Harvard Oak (Quercus havardii) aka Shinnery Oak or Harvard Shin Oak--it is really a tree, but a very short one. Maxes out at 2' to 3' tall but can grow in the driest conditions imaginable. Once it is sort of old (4 or years old) it will begin to sucker and form a thicket. Ashe Juniper (Juniperus ashei) Gets 15-20' tall and grows in well-drained sand, loam, clay or limestone. Has a shaggy bark that peels off in long strips. Very dark green foliage. Rocky Mountain Juniper (Juniperus scopulorum) Gets 30' to 35' tall (eventually). Slow-growing but is very long-lived and tolerates tough growing conditions. Oneseed Juniper (Juniperus monosperma) Gets 15 to 20' tall, and grows in any well-drained soil. Probably the most cold-hardy juniper. Silverleaf Mountain Mahoghany (Cercocarpus mntanus var. argenteus) Usually grows about 10 to 15' tall and maybe a little shorter in very dry sandy soil in a hot climate. Has dark green leaves (on top)with a fuzzy silver underside. Very slow growing. Very hard wood. Tolerates drought very well and grows in any well-drained soil. Colorado Pinyon (Pinus edulis) Is a pretty short tree (around 10' tall) that can eventually reach 20' if well-irrigated. Grows in any well-drained soil. Extremely drought tolerant. Cottonwood (very well adapted to dry western areas but not used in home landscapes much....just thought I'd mention it, but I wouldn't recommend it because it tears up sidewalks, roads, foundations and plumbing lines). Now, if you have two acres and could plant it far, far away from the house, it might not be a bad choice. This is a very long answer and I hope the info is helpful. I'm too tired to proofread it for typos, so please forgive any you find. Dawn Here is a link that might be useful: Trees for Oklahoma

Thank you for the compliment stompoutbermuda (like the GW name by the way!). I've never seen a snake in my yard, and I live in prime snake territory. We have several species here (rattlers, coachwhips and gartner snakes). The last two are more of a benefit because they keep rodents and gophers at bay. I'm on the very outskirts of town too. Behind that wall is nothing but "wilderness" aka grassland(those palms line a country street back there). I guess it's simply a matter of being aware of your surroundings and being careful while you're out in the yard. Maybe carrying some sort of stick when you're doing maintenance and cleaning to poke around with before you stick your hand into a mess. I do have plenty of other wildlife around though. I have hummingbirds visiting my yard daily. I even think they nest in a bottlebrush tree. We also have a whole family of lizards that like to hang out on the wall and the patio. Oh, and some red-tailed skinks too. Those are really a treat to see! In the winter we get a whole array of wetland birds like blue & white egrets, seagulls, sandpipers, ducks, geese...the whole spectrum! Also, remember that snakes and other reptiles are cold blooded so they like to lay on rock/boulders/walls/streets to warm up. That's not to say that snakes won't seek shelter in the shrubs and bushes, but just something to think about. Here's a more updated picture of the yard. The one above has a huge volunteer gourd vine taking over the path to the patio. Now that it's gone, it looks a bit less crowded.

I am out to collect some seeds of my Nolina texana. I want lots more of them. The N macrocarpa are slow to bloom.(I thought I offered you cactus Garden some years back). I did plant them on top of rock down in a rough slide . It is a rough area that gets no care at all. They are slow to establish any size. I was not nice to them. O.,For your grass garden there are plenty of natives that combine nicely with grasses and stand up to this heat without water, believe it or not. The mexican oregano with NO water is blooming and so is the flame acanthus and the dalea greggii. They might noot be growing much. I collected some heteratheca from the Wichita Mountains that CactusGarden is growing and they are a low blooming clumping variety that blooms all summer on no water.I think I sent Castro garden home with some to at a plantswap. they do seed out a but but are easy to pull.I like the standing cypress. They bloomed for me this year. I did water them in their spring and fall window for germination but nothing since then. They are tall and combine nicely with shorter bunch grasses. This year I seeded out 50 new mexican seed varieties that I collected but alas, my jobs, this summer and a personal crisis has all but killed them off. I have another heterotheca variety from new Mexico that has me all excited but I am not sure I will have anything at the end of the summer. My watering doldrums have set in. I can barely drag myself out to water what remains in the nursery area. I also have a goldenrod from the Wichitaw mountains that I am looking forward to. even as a seedling , it seems unfazed by my erratic watering. Me thinks I will go up their this fall to collect some more seeds. Such a beautiful place.