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okiedawn1

Recommended Plants for Oklahoma

Okiedawn OK Zone 7
18 years ago

I'm posting this list for Mariposa, who has been at the mercy of the guys at Home Depot who are recommending...um, let's just say they are recommending some unusual plants.

Since we want for Mariposa to have gardening success, let's give her a list of plants she can use to landscape her home.

I hope those of you reading this post will add to the thread, beccause lots of heads are better than just one!

Here's my list:

First the disclaimer, almost everything I list will do well if you have good drainage, have amended the soil with some organic material, mulch it well and water it occasionally.

Secondly, think of your house as having four microclimates--east, west, north, south. A plant listed as doing well in one microclimate may or may not do well in another. For example, most plants that would like the shady north side of the house would hate the bright sunny west side, unless you are in an old, established neighborhood with huge trees and lots of shade.

NORTH:

For the north side of your house, which tends to be shadier and cooler than the rest of the yard, and more exposed to winter's cold fronts:

TREES: Redbud (Cercis canadensis)--grows as an understory tree in the forest, so can handle quite a lot of shade. The spring blooms are a bonus.

Amur Maple (Acer ginala)--tough tree and lovely fall color

Possumhaw Holly--(Ilex ?)--a tough native that grows as an understory tree in the wild. Starts out shrub-size but can easily attain 10-15 feet in height. Deciduous. Berries.

SHRUBS: All of these like full shade to part shade.

Oregon Grape Holly (Mahonia aquifolium)

Leatherleaf Mahonia (Mahonia bealei)

Acuba (Acuba japonica)--needs shade in both summer or winter or it will get leaf scorch and die; it is beautiful

Nandina (Nandina domestica)

Viburnums (there are many kinds: Rusty Blackhaw Virburnum, Arrowwood Virburnum, Burkwood Viburnum)

Japanese Holly (Ilex crenata--many named cultivars are available--research to find one the right height)

GROUNDCOVERS: (In addition to the hostas and vinca you have, Mariposa, here's a couple of others you could use)

Monkey Grass/Mondo Grass (Ophiopgon japonicus)

Liriope/Lily-Turf (Liriope muscari)

English Ivy (Hedera helix)

Persian Ivy ((Hedera colchica)

Autumn Fern (Dryopterix erythrosora)

PERENNIALS:

Ajuga (Ajuga reptens)--could also be used as a ground cover;

blooms in spring and a little on and off after that, spreads easily)

Royal Fern (Osmunda regalis)

Sweet Woodruff (Galium odoratum)

ANNUALS: (for color if you want it)

Wax begonias (Begonia semperflorens)

Caladium (Caladiums area available in many colors/heights)

Coleus (Solenostemon scutellarioides)--the old standards love shade; there are some new ones called Sun Coleus that will grow in shade or quite a bit of sun

Impatiens (Impatiens wallerana)--these guzzle lots of water!

EAST SIDE:

For the east side of your house, which likely gets morning sun and is shadier in the afternoon, or is at least more sheltered from the western sun than the west & south sides of your house:

The ones already listed for the north side of the house, plus:

Caddo Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum 'Caddo')--would likely take full sun, but would like some afternoon shade better

Southern Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora)--gets huge!

Saucer Magnolia (Magnolia soulandiana)--also gets quite large. There are so smaller cultivars of magnolias available, like 'Little Gem"--maybe 10 to 12' tall eventually

Leyland Cypress

Atlas Cedar

SHRUBS:

Abelia grandiflora

Boxwood, small-leaved (Buxus microphylla)

Oakleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)--many named cultivars available

Hollies: Burford Holly, Dwarf Burford Holly, Yaupon Holly, Dwarf Yaupon Holly, Foster's Holly, Nellie R. Stevens Holly (should be listed as a tree, 'cause Nellie R. Stevens gets huge!)

GROUNDCOVERS:

Purple wintercreeper (Euonymus fortunei)

Liriope/Lily-turf (Liriope muscari)

Moneygrass/mondograss (Ophiopogon japonicus)

Bishop's Weed (Aegopodium podogaria)--can be invasive

PERENNIALS:

Coral Bells (Heuchera sanguinea)

Sweet Woodruff (Galium odoratum)

Four O'Clocks (Mirabilis jalapa)

Plumbago (Ceratostigma plumbaginoides)

Iris hybrids

Sweet violet (Viola odorata)--can be invasive

ANNUALS: All those listed for the north side would do well on the east side, plus these:

Lobelia

Sweet Alyssum (Lobularia maritima)

Flowering Tobacco (Nicotiana alata)

Geraniums (Perlargoniums)

Petunias

Wishbone Flower (Torenias)

SOUTH AND WEST: Any plants on the south and west sides of your home will need to be able to handle lots of sun and the drying south winds (unless you have huge, old established shade trees).

Trees:

Shumard Oak (Quercus shumardii)

Chinkapin Oak (Quercus muhlenbergii)

Live Oak (Quercus virginiana)

Sawtooth Oak (Quercus acutissima)

Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis)

Leyland Cypress

Kentucky Coffee Tree (gets huge & very drought tolerant)

Chinese Pistache (Pistacia chinensis)

Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpus)

Cedar Elm (Ulmus crassifolia)

Lacebark Em (Ulmus parvifolia)

Chaste Tree (Vitex agnus-castus) bluish blooms in summer, will grow short of shrubby but you can prune it into a tree form

and there's many, many more.

SHRUBS:

Any junipers

Any nandina

Any barberry

Rose of Sharon/Althea (Hibiscus syriacus)

Any burford or yaupon holly

Crape Myrtle (Lagersromia indica)--some get tree-sized, some are medium-sized, some are dwarf

and many others

GROUNDCOVERS/CLIMBING VINES (to shade the house or porch):

American Crossvine (Bignonia capreolata)--climber

Boston Ivy (Parthenocisus triscuspidata)--climber

Trumpetcreeper Vine (Campsis radicans) hummers love it but it can be very invasive--climber

Virginia Creeper (dreeps or climbs)

Climbing Roses (climbs if it has something to climb, or arches)

GROUNDCOVERS: these are the tough ones that can handle the heat and sun

Stonecrop (Sedum species--many varieties)

Junipers (the low, spreading species of juniper)

Hardy Ice Plant (Delosperma copperi)

Asian jasmine

PERENNIALS:

Autumn Sage (Salvia greggii)

Cannas (Canna hybrids--they won't die, and you can't kill them!)

Coneflowers (Echinaceas)

Coreopsis (Coreopsis)

Gaillardia aka Blanket Flower (Gaillardia grandiflora)

Gaura (Gaura lindheimeri)

ANNUALS:

Cockscombs (Celosia sp.)

Cosmos (Cosmos sp.)

Copper Plant (Acalypha wilkesiana)

Gazania daisy (Gazania splendens)

Globe Amaranth/Gomphrena (Gomphrena globosa)

Ornamental Sweet Potato (Ipomea batatas)--there's "Blackie" which is maroon, "Marguerite" which is chartreuse, a variegated one with pink/green/white leaves whose name I don't remember, and one that's new (at least to me) "Ladyfingers"

Periwinkle/Annual Vinca (Catharanthus roseus)

Summer Snapdragon (Angelonia angustifolia)

Zinnia (Zinnia elegans)

Daylily (Hemerocallis species/hybrids)

Mexican Petunia (Ruellia brittoniana)

Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia)

Wormwood (Artemesia species)

Verbeba (Verbena canadensis)

Oh, and I didn't even touch on the idea of ornamental grasses really. There are many, most for some degree of sun.

Got questions? Ask!

Dawn

Comments (79)

  • MarkBledsoe
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Saterlee's was having a 50% off sale yesterday, may still be happening today (May 14).
    Might put them in the affordable range

  • OKC1
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Amen!
    Will have to go by and see what they have that I can't live without. (0:

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  • MariposaTraicionera
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hello folks,

    I'm back. Had lots of problems getting on this site for some reason. Can't believe it worked today.

    How is everyone? Is it too late to plant daylillies?

    I've noticed that the vinca we planted three years ago has almost taken over an entire box! The other plant that seems to be actually covering under a tree is the ivy. Can't say I'm complaining about this because that area was UGLY! But I keep hearing that these two are notorious for taking over your yard.

    Anyway, can I use some cuttings from both the vinca and ivy to make new plants?

    Still clueless but willing to learn, lol

    Hi Dawn!!!

  • susanlynne48
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi, Mariposa. I have vinca and ivy, and yes, they do take over. I've kind of allowed that to happen because my yard is huge, and it actually performs as a great mulch for the things I have planted in and among them. Once I decide to tackle them, it will be either with Roundup (I hate chemicals), or black plastic to kill the top growth, and it makes it easier to dig up).

    I imagine it is pretty easy to propagate both of these plants. I just use a light mix of perlite, peat moss, and sand. Make sure you cut right at the below the node (where the leaf joins the stem), and take off all leaves except for the top three or so. Put a baggy over it, but make sure it doesn't touch the plant. The purpose is to provide humidity and promote the growth of the roots. You can just root them in water, too, but I would change the water every couple of days. It has also been suggested that rooting them in water in GREEN glass/plastic makes for quicker root growth. I've never tried it, but heard other people say it works. Or you can layer them by burying a stem alongside the main plant, pin it close to the nodes, covering with soil, and waiting until it produces roots before you cut it from the main plant and dig it up to transplant elsewhere.

    You can get a bunch of results if you google "propagation" on the net.

    Daylilies are so tough, I've planted them late before, and they may not flower for you this year, but they will come back next year for the better. I have a repeat blooming daylily that blooms all summer long, and the old fashioned "tiger lily" (even tho it's not really a lily, but rather a hemerocallis). I also have a couple that have peach blooms on them. I like to extend the season by planting asiatic lilies, oriental, orienpet, martagons, trumpets, and formosanum (blooms late summer to early fall). These lilies are true lilies, whereas the daylilies are not. Lilies are very easy to grow. This year, my orientals are not doing so well because of the cold/hot up and down temperatures we have had. But the asiatics are gorgeous. I have 'Oklahoma City' (orange with yellow centers), a tangerine orange (brilliant), a pink (Muscadet), a pink and yellow (Tom Pouce), and two different whites, a dwarf and tall. Last year was an absolutely wonderful summer for the lilies. This year is questionable.

    I had problems with this site yesterday, too. Don't know what was happening.

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  • okprairie
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have orientals for the first time this year and am disappointed that the flowers have such a short bloom period. Is it because of the crazy weather, or is it normal for them to bloom once and then that's it. I actually have orientals and asiatics, and the orientals ( I think) only get one bloom. Is that the way they usually are? The asiatics get more blooms and last longer. They are gorgeous, but I have had lilies as cut flowers that lasted longer.

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Mariposa & all you other Okies!

    GARDEN WEB: I haven't had any trouble getting on Garden Web, but my son is home from college and I have had trouble getting on the computer! lol Oh well, he's only home for a few weeks and the house sure is much livelier while he is here, even if I have to share computer time with him!

    ROOTING CUTTINGS: Susan gave you great advice on rooting cuttings, Mariposa, and I just want to add one small tip to it. Willows are notorious for rooting easily and an old-fashioned way to root other plants more easily is to root them in willow water. If you have access to any kind of willow, cut off a few cuttings from relatively small branches or large twigs. Stick the willow cuttings in a jar or bucket of water and let them sit there a couple of days. After 3 or 4 days remove the willow cuttings from the water, but save the water. Take your ivy or vinca cuttings and then root them in the willow water. They should root faster/better than they would have in ordinary water. I suspect there is a natural "rooting hormone" in willow, similar to the commercial rooting hormones you can purchase. It always works for me. (NOTE: If you don't want to plant those willow cuttings you used to make the willow water, dispose of them carefully....like in a bag of trash. If you throw them on the ground on or a compost pile, they are likely to root themselves into the ground and begin growing!)

    DAYLILIES: And, as for the daylilies...I think they could be planted almost any time and they will grow well enough to survive, even if you pick them up at "end of summer" sales at the nurseries in July or August. They might not bloom until next year, but they will bloom. I have a daylily bed that sits about 300 feet from the house and it gets NO supplemental rain--only what Mother Nature sends it. Some years the foliage will yellow/brown out in July or August and the daylilies go dormant, but they always come back as soon as it rains, and they always rebloom the next year. These are very tough plants. I grow them in unimproved clay and they do just fine. I don't grow many of the other lilies because they need better soil than I have to offer, and I like easy care flowers that bloom for longer periods in our prolonged oven-like summers.

    Dawn

  • kSuzy
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    My husband and I are in the process of making a hummingbird garden. Any suggestions. We have planted some Azaleas and have some hostas in containers. We were told you have to take the hostas in in the winter. The area is about 20x50. We have made a raised bed for the azaleas and we have some garden ornaments and a stone path. We need more flowers and want them to be easy care and are thinking about a ground cover (not moss). Any suggestions?

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hummingbirds love anything with tubular flowers and yummy nectar. There are so very, very many that they like. Here's a few suggestions:

    VINES:
    American Cross Vine
    Trumpet Creeper Vine (warning--can be very invasive)
    Coral Honeysuckle
    Morning Glories/Moonflowers
    Cypress Vine
    Mina Lobata
    Cardinal climber

    TREES & SHRUBS:
    Chaste Tree (Vitex agnus-castus)
    Mimosa (Albizia julibrissin)
    Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis)
    Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus)
    Butterfly Bush (Buddleia sp.)
    Mexican Buckeye
    Red Buckeye
    Red Texas Hibiscus (Hibiscus coccineus)
    Halberd-Leaved Hibiscus (Hibiscus laevis)

    FLOWERS:
    Hollyhocks
    French hollyhocks, aka Zebrina malva or Althaea Zebrina)
    Delphinium, including annual delphiniums which are commonly known as Larkspur
    Lantana
    Cardinal Flower
    Texas Hummingbird Sage (Salvia coccinea)
    Pineapple Sage (S. elegans)
    Scarlet Sage (S. splendans)
    Gregg's Salvie (S. greggi)
    Petunias
    Mexican Petunias (Ruellia sp.)
    American Columbine
    Indian Paintbrush
    Penstemons
    Cannas
    Four O'Clocks
    Red Hot Poker
    Verbena
    Mexican Firebush (Hamelia patens)
    Red Yucca
    Phlox
    Beebalm

    I don't really have a good ground cover suggestion that would also attract hummers. Maybe someone else will think of one that would work for you.

    Dawn

  • sarab
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Are there hostas that are not winter hardy? Mine die back after a freeze but come back like gangbusters in the spring.

    sara

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Sara!

    Susan (aka Susanlynne48) is our hosta authority so I hope she'll see your question and answer it.

    I THINK all hostas are cold-hardy in zone 7, but there are exceptions, and having hostas in above-ground containers could be an exception. I know that even cold-hardy plants can freeze in above-ground containers because the container and its soil provide less insulation to the plants that they would receive if planted in the ground. Some people get around this by moving their containers into a cellar or insulated garage.

    Others dig a hole in the ground and sink the containers down into the hole, but...for some people with really rocky soil or really dense clay soil, this might not be practical. In fact, difficult soil could be the reason the hostas are in containers in the first place, although I am seeing more people growing hostas as container plants just because they want to!

    Have a great day!

    Dawn

  • flicka_85
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hummingbirds just flock to my hosta. As for winter hardy hosta there surely are some. I live in central Minnesota and routinely get -30 or -40 in the winter. Hosta is a standard plant here that everybody grows because it is so hardy. I think if it did not freeze and go dormant it would die! My hosta is up and beautiful thought not blooming yet. I have hummingbird feeders in my window so I can see the little hummers all the time.

  • OKC1
    18 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Winter hardy and evergreen are not the same thing.
    Many plants that die back and go dormant during the winter further north stay green all year here.
    I have roses that seldom lose all their leaves, for instance.
    But all of my hosta, which are planted in the ground, go dormant in winter.

  • MariposaTraicionera
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    So much has happened since I last posted here. We had to give up on gardening for awhile, but are back in the swing of things. Learning a bit.

    One thing though, we just got through uprooting and destroying the Ivy we planted, so now I need some shade plants (perennials too) and some flowers.

    I have planted Zinnias with much luck, Texas Rock Rose which I love, and also geraniums and they are all doing well. My Honeysuckle isn't though :-(

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Mariposa!!!!

    I was wondering what had happened to you and if you were still here in Oklahoma and still gardening.

    I'm glad to see you are still here and still gardening. :D

    So, what kind of shade plants are you thinking of planting? And, what is your honeysuckle's problem? Is it not growing? Has it had powdery mildew issues? Let us know.

    Happy Gardening,

    Dawn

  • MariposaTraicionera
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Dawn! Glad you remembered me.

    The Honeysuckle we bought from a nursery and have not had too much luck with it. This spring it started off looking good and then ended up with yellow leaves and black spots, kind of like roses do.

    I have no idea what type of shade plants to get. I was reading that Hostas attract slugs, YUCK and had lost about six Hostas to some plant eating insect, but maybe it was slugs?

    I really want some plants that do more than give ground cover or stay green/white but bloom. Maybe even flowers. Are there perennial Impatients that do well in the shade?

    In my herb garden, for the first time I decided to introduce flowers in pots/boxes and I love the look. It's a small garden, so this works for me. I'm a novice gardener, but will still try to post a few pics of what I have planted so far.

    Very lucky with Curry Plants, Rosemary, Thymes, Oregano (various types), chives, basil, but no luck with Dill1 It gets eaten before we could get a little bit off.

    How is your garden? You must have all sorts of fruits/veggies. We're trying some container tomatoes, lettuce, and beans.

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Mariposa,

    How could I forget you--you are unforgettable! And, I think you have such a lovely and memorable name too.

    Your honeysuckle problem is one common to honeysuckles. If it survives until next year, spray it with a fungicide early in the spring BEFORE the foliar problems occur and that should take care of it.

    There aren't any perennial impatiens that I know of, at least not in our climate. Begonias grow incredibly well in the shade, but most of them are annuals. You CAN have hostas without the slugs getting them, though. There is an ORGANIC product that absolutely controls slugs and snails and is non-toxic to pets and other animals and children. The active ingredient is Iron Phosphate, and any of it that is not consumed by the pests will break down into iron which is one of the micronutrients plants need. The original one I bought was called Slug-Go! but there are many others and they usally have the words Non-Toxic or Safe Slug and Snail Killer on their packaging. I'll link one to show you what they look like. I think the one I see most often at Lowe's and Home Depot is made by Safer. You don't want the chemical one which has metaldehyde as an active ingredient--you want the non-toxic iron phosphate. So, you CAN have hostas if you use Slug-go or something similar.

    Let me think about shade-loving plants, and I'll post a list for you tonight or tomorrow. There are a LOT of them, though, and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at how many options there are.

    Your herb garden sounds lovely. And, in a way, we are ALL novice gardeners....'cause no matter how much we've grown or how much we think we know, there is always so much more to learn and so many more plants to try. Thomas Jefferson was a gardener long before he became president of the USA, and he grew a huge amount of plants at Monticello. Yet, he said "Though I am an old man, I am but a young gardener." That is one of my favorite garden quotes of all time. Perhaps gardening keeps us all young.

    My garden is a jungle. Every year it starts out all nice and neat and tidy. Raised beds. Mulch. Carefully spaced plants. Nicely mulched pathways. At that point it looks spectacular. THEN, summer arrives and the plants seem to think they need to grow three times as fast as they were growing in cooler weather......everything goes wild and I simply lose control. All the veggies and herbs and flowers sprawl and climb and run rampant. The pathways disappear. Plants climb the tomato cages and then climb the fence (9' tall) and then start hanging back down from the top of the fence. Stuff that is near the fence grows out through the fence and stuff I didn't even plant sprouts in beds and pathways......so, it REALLY is a jungle! I love it! Usually, the jungle starts to thin out a bit once we start exceeding 100 degrees here. Really, though, I find it hard to seize back control until fall. I do love it, but it can get unruly. Whose fault is that? Well, of course it is my fault and nobody else's. I plant three times as many plants in any given bed as I ought to. (In my own defense, though, denser spacing shades the ground and helps keep it about 20 degrees cooler than bare soil.) Also, denser spacing keeps weeds out. So, it is a jungle and I love it, but once it hits the jungle stage, the snakes are a lot harder to see, so I have to be really careful. I have NOT had an extremely close encounter with a rattlesnake or copperhead yet this year, so I am happy about that.

    I do hope your container plants grow well for you. Lettuce, you know, is a spring or fall plant as it can't take the summer heat.

    Talk to you later,

    Dawn

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I was in the kitchen making dinner and the thought popped into my head that I didn't link a photo of one of the organic snail and slug baits. Why can't that thought pop into my head BEFORE I post a reply?

    So, here's the link.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Example of One Kind of Snail and Slug Bait

  • MariposaTraicionera
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Dawn, thanks for the link. Is this brand only available online? Oh dear, I didn't realise lettuce shouln't be grown now. My sister lives in Europe and I guess the information she gave to plant now, really applies to a different climate! I wonder if they will do okay in the container? I started them from seeds. So what time do I plant for fall? September?

    By the way, is it really true that Marigolds will keep the bugs away? She was telling me to plant them among the other flowers and herbs, but I do have Marigolds near some of my Geraniums and they're not looking too healthy. I haven't figured out what's eating them yet. The leaves look all zig zaggy and are turning brown.

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Mariposa,

    Slug-Go and similar products are usually available in stores....I just googled to find you a photo so you'd know what to look for. Early in the growing season, I found Slug-Go at Home Depot and I found Slug-Go Plus in a nursery.

    The one I've seen in our local Wal-Mart and Lowe's is a different brand--I think it is made by Garden Safe and is a white, aqua and maybe lilac bag. I'll try to find and link a photo of it. Remember, the key is that you want the product whose active ingredient is Iron Phosphate and NOT metaldehyde, which is a very toxic (especially to dogs and cats) chemical.

    Marigolds are said to repel insects and I think there is some truth in that, although I do not know if it has ever been proven scientifically. Most years my marigolds (I plant them with my tomato plants) don't have any pest problems. Sometimes, when I first transplant them into the garden, sow bugs and pill bugs eat them, as we discussed in the other marigold thread. For that, I use Slug-Go or Slug-Go Plus.

    Sometimes, in very hot weather like we are having now, spider mites get on them. If that happens, I treat them like a trap crop and pull them up and immediately put them into a plastic trash bag and tie it shut so that the spider mites cannot escape. Spider mites are tiny...about the size of a period or the dot on a letter "i" on this page. They tend to cluster on the undersides of the leaves and look like tiny reddish specks of dirt. You can hold a sheet of white paper underneath a plant and shake or "thump" the foliage. If little "dots" fall onto the paper and start crawling around, those are the spider mites. Once you have spider mites, they can get out of hand rather quickly, and that is why I pull up and dispose of the marigolds if they have heavy infestation of spider mites.

    The link below shows a larger container of the Garden Safe brand of snail and slug killer that I use for pill bugs and sow bugs. The label on this container resembles the smaller bag of the stuff I bought at Wal-Mart or Lowe's earlier this year.

    Dawn

    Here is a link that might be useful: Garden Safe brand of organic snail/slug killer

  • MariposaTraicionera
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I also saw some strange looking flies the last few days. Are these harmful? They seem to have a lightish blue wing. Why am I already feeling frustrated about bugs/pests in the garden? I don't know how you guys do this all the time. I guess I thought planting healthy flowers/herbs meant everything would run smoothly. Forgot about that these tiny pests are more in control than we are!

    Will look for the slug/snail stuff, and definitely want to go organic.

    BTW, we get our yard sprayed by a company for unruly weeds (lawn) but I wonder if this affects the good bugs too? I might have to cancel that and look into something you recommended instead.

    Thanks again Dawn. You're a Lifesaver :-)

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Mariposa, Almost all flies are good and many of them perform pollination tasks. Also, there are some very small pollinator type bees and wasps that look like flies, but aren't flies. I also think some flies, especially robber flies, are predators that eat pest insects.

    The truth about bugs is this.....God made all kinds of bugs and we cannot (and would not want to) make them all go away. Most of the time, the beneficial insects keep the pest insects under control, and the best thing we can do is leave all the bugs alone and let nature work the way it is intended to work. In my opinion, and this is supported by everything I have observed over the decades, pest insects tend to get out of control ONLY when we humans do something to screw up the balance of nature. This includes using broad-spectrum pesticides, chasing away frogs, toads and birds, and either overfertilizing or overwatering plants (or both) which makes them more attaractive to pest insects. So, the more you let your landscape operate naturally, the less trouble you'll have. And, yes, it is hard to do "nothing" even when you know that "nothing" is the best thing to do.

    I do not know if there are any scientific studies that show that the use of herbicides affects insect populations. However, if you go organic and are sincerely devoted to an organic program, you will find that healthier practices give you a healthier landscape and biosystem. I try to think of weeds as indicator plants--the kind of weed you have can tell you what is wrong with your soil, for example. Some weeds are dynamic accumulators--their roots reach way, way down deep into the earth and bring up minerals that upper levels of soil are deficient in. Then, when the weed dies and decomposes, that mineral is released into the top soil via the decomposed weed. I believe dandelions are one of the plants that are dynamic accumulators.

    I'll use grassburrs as an example of one way that weeds tell you what is wrong with your soil. If you have grassburrs (stickers) in your yard, that is an indication that your soil has a low humus content. You can make those grassburrs go away simply by cutting your lawn with a mulching mower since the grass blades add humus to the lawn as they decompose. Or, you can use a fertilizer spreader to spread very fine compost over the area where you have grassburrs. When we first moved here we had a lot of grassburrs in our front lawn area. As the soil improved, they went away. I didn't do anything, except avoid the use of all chemicals and mow with a mulching mower.

    Good luck with your lawn and garden. Gardening is FUN and I try not to stress over things I can't control, mostly because there are such a lot of them! I did find that one part of being organic means you have to be willing to tolerate plants that look less-than-perfect but the trade-off is that you are not poisoning the environment in which you live, and you find yourself surrounded by a lovely array of butterflies, moths, dragonflies, damselflies, birds, toads, frogs, lizards, newts, etc.

    Dawn

  • redding
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have to post a note here about buying from the big places, and whether you can trust their advice. As a previous horticulturist and nurseryperson in CA, I can tell you that it's fine to buy from them, IF you do your research and know what you're getting. We had extreme differences in climate zone in northern CA, and my boss didn't care if the plants would grow for the customers, or simply die. He just wanted to sell plants. It was an enlightening experience! Lowes, Home Depot, and Home Base were all clueless. They wanted to sell whatever they had been shipped by the suppliers. So, DO YOUR READING, and check out great places like this forum for advice from people who DO know, and will give you straight answers. I'm having to learn to garden all over again since moving to OK, and I plan to keep this forum bookmarked!

  • thescottfamily1997_gmail_com
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Great information in this forum! I have a few questions for the knowledgable people on here. Forgive me if I am not posting this in the correct place...I'm still trying to figure this out. We just built a house on 3 acres in a new housing adition in SW Oklahoma. Our house is in the middle of the three acres that gently slopt down to a pond. We have a blank canvas to landscape, which is a little overwhelming, but also exciting! We planted sprigs of tifsport grass last year that has covered 70% of the yard, and are ready to start trees, flowerbeds, etc. We have planted 5 trees so far purchased from wal-mart (sorry), 2 American Elms, a crabapple, weeping willow down by the pond, and a calorie pear. I would love suggestions for other fast growing trees, shrubs, ANYTHING that we can start with! We also have a sprinker system for the entire 3 acres off well water. Thank you all so much for any ideas/suggestions!

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    15 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Tara,

    If I might, I'd like to make a suggestion for you to consider.

    If you don't learn one other fact on this forum, learn this one: almost without exception, fast-growing trees are problem trees. Fast growing basically equals fast-dying. Sorry, but it is true.

    It is tempting to plant fast-growing trees because people are, by nature, in a hurry and want to have a more-or-less "instant" landscape, especially with regards to shade trees. However, most fast-growing trees are weak-wooded and tend to break easily in ice storms and severe thunderstorms. They also tend to be very disease-prone and often have little resistance to insect pests. Thus, about the time your fast-growing tree is getting a nice height and you are feeling really pleased with yourself for choosing such a wonderful tree, it starts dying and you have to replace it and start over from scratch.

    In the horticultural/gardening world, there is a nickname for fast-growing, weak-wooded, disease-prone trees: we call them "trash trees". So, instead of going for 'fast-growing' trees that will be giving you massive problems in a few short years, it would be better to plant somewhat slower-growing but higher quality trees.

    And, there is nothing inherently wrong with buying plants from Wal-Mart, so don't apologize. Just be sure you do your research before you buy and only buy plants that are known to be either native or well-adapted to our state. And, doing your research and knowing what you want is important, whether you are buying from a big box store or a nursery. Most retailers will sell anything people will buy--the majority of them have no idea what grows well here nor do the care. For them, it is a "bonus" if you buy trash trees because they know you'll be back in a few years to buy other trees to replace your fast-growing trees. So, in a sense, it is better for business, in the long term, if they sell you trash trees that will need to be replaced. And, of course, there are some reputable nurseries that do not sell trash trees, but they are rare and become more rare every year. Some nurserymen justify the selling of trash trees by saying they are just giving their customers what they want, but my opinion is that they are taking advantage of new gardeners who don't realize they are buying "trash trees". Trash trees are very profitable for retailers because they can be raised to selling size in a very brief period of time and they guarantee "repeat business" because you'll be buying more trees in a few years to replace them

    If you'll tell me where you are in SW Oklahoma, I'll list some quality trees that would grow well in your region of the state. You don't necessarily have to reveal your city, but knowing your county would help. Depending on how far you are to the southwest, trees that would do well for you may be quite different from trees that would do well in northeastern, central and southeastern OK.

    Dawn

  • shekanahh
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have a lovely mixed bed of shrubs, grasses, perinneals, and evergreens all growing happily together. My one main problem is that tree saplings are always volunteering in that bed, invariably in the worse possible spot.
    I'm wondering if most of the trouble isn't caused by the two large trees growing in the midst, that had originally started in what was once a hedge row. Or, do some of these volunteers seem to blow in and take root from elsewhere just to annoy me?

    I've seen pecan saplings and Norway Maple, but mostly I think the two trees, whatever they are, are the main culprits. I hate to because they do offer some shade, but I may have to have them removed. This year it seems I have these annoying saplings coming up everywhere. They somehow even manage to start up through the dense shade of large evergreen shrubs. Grr city!

    Maybe a dense mulch is the way out?

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    14 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Shekanahh,

    I don't know if you have squirrels, but I do and I blame them for the pecan and oak trees they plant all over the place. Are the two large trees a pecan and a Norway Maple?

    The best way I know of to keep the saplings out is to put down a densely-woven landscape fabric OR a layer of cardboard and then pile on heavy mulch. Either the fabric or cardboard keeps anything that sprouts in the ground beneath them from working its way up to the surface, and they keep anything that sprouts in the mulch from sinking roots down into the ground. Mulch in combination with either heavy, thick cardboard or a woven landscape fabric is much more effective than mulch alone in my yard.

    If you decide to take out these two trees, you might want to take out one this year and one next year. I am a little concerned that if both come out at the same time, the plants that have been used to shade may get too much sun and not be able to adjust. I sure would try the mulch with a barrier beneath it before I'd sacrifice the shade in this climate though.

    Dawn

  • hart4plano
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have read all the posts here from the past years and I just want to say THANK YOU to everyone who contributed. I am out-of-state and I am trying to figure out what to plant for my son's new home in Blanchard, OK. It's a lot of red clay, some hills, and very windy. I have done hours of research, and the best advice I found was contributed by everyone here. THANK YOU!

  • patsdogs_yahoo_com
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Someone mentioned dusty miller and its survival rate, along with lamb's ears. I found an artemesia in the west that is really tough. It's very low-growing but can spread out several feet, and it will survive killing freezes as well as blazing summer heat. It's called Silver Brocade and is great for anyone who wants a pale, easy-care contrast.
    Also, the all-time best honeysuckle I've ever found is called Goldflame. I grew it in the west and have it here in OK and love it in both places. It's vigorous and dense, with a better growth habit than most honeysuckle and it blooms almost continuously from spring clear into November with big colorful blossoms. The only problem I have ever found with it is aphid, and it's easily controlled by a systemic pesticide like Bayers that also feeds the plant.
    I was surprised that no-one mentioned perennial hibiscus as being an easy, low care, impressive plant that will take full sun. Other than gophers, we've never had a problem with our hibiscus, but they do like to be watered.
    And never overlook the soil that you're working with. If a plant needs good drainage, it will not survive in clay, no matter if all the other conditions are perfect. The wind can destroy a plant in no time at all, so be particularly careful of putting in things that are tall and unable to resist breaking, or that have no defense against it. Sunray coreopsis is a workhorse that blooms all summer long, but needs constant deadheading to keep it going. Some of the perennial salvias do well here and are a nice blue or purple contrast to the brilliant yellow of Sunray. German bearded iris is vigorous and nearly bullet-proof for a novice gardener. Some new ones are repeat bloomers.

  • makinggraphicdesign
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I am in Tulsa, OK. I want to put a flowering vine near my front porch on an iron trellis. I want a vine I can control with a little pruning, not too abundant so I can keep it out of my eaves. The wall is on the north side of the house facing west. It is in shade all but for the hottest part of the day from around 2 pm till 5pm or so. I am thinking about a Armond Clematis, Star Jasmin, Blackeyed Susan vine or Carolina Jasmine. Any suggestions what vine would be best for this situation? Would bees near the front door be a problem with any of these?

  • quietandrogyny
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    MakingGraphic, I'm in Tulsa too and was thinking of doing something similar, but I'm in west side and the front of my house is... I think South facing, and the back of my house is north facing. BUT My porch has a very lovely overhang that puts a good 5-6 feet of space in the shade for the whole day for the most part, with the exception of the morning sun because there's no house on the other side of us to block it (it's blocked by a large fence during late afternoon/evening sun)... So maybe some plants that do better in shade would be good? I just don't want anything that is

    1. Easy to kill
    2. Requires a LOT of work or pruning
    3. Won't get out of control

    My landlord's putting the porch swing back up and my idea is to put a nice, sturdy trellis up on the front porch and plant some nice vines and flowers and turn the porch into a little "viewing area" for birds and butterflies since over here we have a LOT of both, so I'd recommendations that are friendly to both, but work well together.... But I am ridiculously new to gardening (most experience being with herbs) and so the "hard to kill" specification is VERY important. I always feel bad every time I kill a plant -___-

    I was also really hoping someone has some ideas for more "tropical" and bright flowers I could add in to that section, but most of the tropical plants I like don't do well in our zone because our winters (though they've been pretty mild the last couple years). Anyone know any good substitutes that will come back each year? I'd ask also for recommendations for plants to attract hummingbirds, but I don't think I live in an area that really has them anymore.

    It's much easier to ask on here than try to find time to get over to the Linnaeus Teaching Gardens and talk to the people there since even living in Tulsa it's quite a trip for me across town, and I'm without a car right now.

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Most vines will require pruning and shaping to keep them from growing too rampantly or they will get out of control. That is their nature and you cannot fight it.

    Some clematis vines will grow well in part shade with morning sun. Coral honeysuckle (I have 'Pink Lemonade') will grow well and bloom well with morning sun/afternoon shade, but grows pretty rampantly in good soil and with adequate moisture. It is very attractive to hummingbirds.

    In your part of the state, if you have well-drained sandy loam soil, you would have success with passionflower vine which is native in your area and often found in the wild. It is the larval food for gulf fritillary butterflies and if they find it, they will devour it, but it regrows quickly. It doesn't really need much care once it is established, but you'd need to be sure to keep it well-watered if you plant it during a drought year.

    You could grow annual vines like morning glories, moonflower vines, cardinal climber, mina lobata, black-eyed susan vine, etc. Generally all you have to do is plant and water them and they do all the rest. They won't hardly die (until frost gets them) and you can't kill them unless you use a herbicide on them or cut them down with a lawnmower or weedeater, and often they come back from the roots. They also commonly reseed so often you only have to plant them once and then they reseed themselves every year.

    American Crossvine did well for me in Texas in morning sun and afternoon shade, and has done well for me here in southern OK in full sun and with no irrigation.

    I grow lots of trumpet creeper vines for the hummingbirds, but I wouldn't recommend them for a location too near a house because they are rampant growers and would bury a house underneath their vines. I am on acreage, where they can grow as they please in areas away from the house. Near the house, I prune them back to the ground every winter to keep them from completely taking over.

    There are not many tropical-looking plants that come back every year since we are not a tropical zone. Cannas come back well in zone 7 in southern OK. I don't know if they do in the Tulsa area. I grow Texas Star hibiscus, which has a very tropical appearance and has come back every year for about a dozen years now, and there are many hardy hibiscus plants that come back reliably. Their large flowers give a tropical look. Daylilies come back and are available in about any color you could want.

    Hardy Hibiscus is pretty carefree. You can grow some of them from seed, but others are grown from cuttings. You can buy them in nurseries, though I don't know if you'll find any at this time of the year with it being such an awful drought year. The nurseries here near us had them as recently as late July or early August though. I grow them in shades of white, pink and red. I'll link some photos of hardy hibiscus so you can see them. Most are hardy to zone 5. They freeze to the ground in winter, and sprout in mid- to late-spring depending on when the soil temperatures get warm. Mine were blooming, with very little irrigation, even in July and August though they did stop blooming once the high temps were going above 107-108. Now that the temps here are back in the upper 90s, they are blooming well. They are about the most-topical-looking but cold hardy plant I can think of other than cannas.

    Dawn

    Here is a link that might be useful: Photos of Hardy Hibiscus

  • lorece
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have a question: In west Tx I cd grow the ground cover, Ice Plant (Lampranthus) anywhere. It wd spread wonderfully, but I brought some to OKC and they died. I noticed on the list here that the Hardy Ice Plant (Delosperma copperi) grows well on the south and west sides of the house so I've looked for it but to no avail. Do any of y'all grow that successfully and know where I might find some near OKC? Thanks in advance!

  • deb4tune1912
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    When can I plant a crepe myrtle? In the winter or spring?

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    10 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    The best time is any time from late fall to early spring, if you can find any to buy and plant at this time of year. Often, the planting stock already has been mostly cleared out of retail outlets by now because they are more focused on selling holiday-related plants like Christmas trees, fresh wreaths and garland, potted amaryllis and paper whites, rosemary plants pruned into a Christmas tree shape, etc.

    Crape myrtles are pretty tough and even will tolerate being planted in the hot summer months as long as you are really careful about watering and ensure their recently-transplanted root systems don't dry out. I mention this because some people want a really specific flower color and prefer to pick out their crape myrtles when they are in bloom in the nursery in order to ensure they are getting the exact color of flower they want.

    The crape myrtles in our yard already had gone dormant and dropped all their leaves even before last night's sub-freezing temperatures, so any crape myrtle you find to purchase at this time of the year should be dormant as well. That's a good thing because a dormant plant suffers less from transplant shock since it isn't trying to support a canopy of foliage.

  • lkbradley13067
    8 years ago

    Can I plant ferns in the ground in Oklahoma and where should I plant them if I can?

  • Sandplum1
    8 years ago

    On Dawn's list of plants for Oklahoma above (the original post), she mentions that Royal ferns are best planted on the north (if I planted them, I would plant them close to the north side of my house....but I won't plant ferns because my soil tends to be on the sandy side, so it drains too well and isn't moist enough for ferns.)

    Keep in mind, not all ferns do well in Oklahoma and most that are sold in big box stores will not overwinter in Oklahoma.

    I have Boston ferns in pots hanging on my porch, where they are well-shaded and I water them deeply by soaking them in a bucket and watering them from above at least every 2-3 days for a minimum of 4 hours because those puppies dry UP. (I normally get the Kim ferns because they tend to be hardier than Boston ferns, but couldn't find any this year.) They will not overwinter outside and shed like crazy inside. Ferns tend to like moist, shaded areas.

    But, hey, I'm really not a fern expert. I just know what I've managed to kill in my yard.


  • lkbradley13067
    8 years ago

    Thank you. I have mine hanging on my enclosed porch but I am tired of cleaning up the mess!

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    8 years ago

    lkbradley, You can grow ferns in the ground in many parts of Oklahoma, but likely not in most parts of western Oklahoma unless you have a really special and unique site and employ the use of a misting system to give them the humidity they normally won't get in western OK.

    This thread is 10 years old and we've had a lot more drought years since 2005 than we had before that, so a lot of people have become more cautious about using ferns that need perpetually moist soil and high humidity to stay happy since we have had to endure far too many hot, dry, drought-plagued summers in recent years. Still, there are ferns that will grow in various parts of the state. The fern that would do best for you depends on the soil you have (whether native soil or highly amended), your annual rainfall and your typical average relative humidity values.

    In Oklahoma, most ferns will need to grow in shade, either full shade or heavily dappled shade. They need soil that is well-draining, though a couple will tolerate a heavier soil, and most of them need soil in general that is very rich is humus and organic matter. If your soil is not rich and humusy, you can amend it by adding a lot of compost, leaf mold, pine bark fines and peat moss, all of which will help the soil drain better and also will make it hold moisture better (that's the miracle of well-drained soil). Nowadays, after enduring multiple drought years since 2005 (seemingly on an almost perpetual basis), I'd build a hugelkultur bed using rich, half-decayed wood, if I wanted to plant ferns. Among the ferns I see most commonly in my part of OK (southcentral OK, very far south and almost in Texas) are Japanese Painted Fern, Autumn Fern, Tassel Fern and Japanese Shield Fern. Of those, the one most tolerant of our heat and soils seems to be Japanese Painted Fern. I believe that Japanese Painted Fern is on the list of "Proven Winners" and also "Oklahoma Proven" plants.

    In the wild in Oklahoma, some types of fern (like maidenhair fern) can be found growing on rocky ledges directly adjacent to small waterfalls, springs, ponds and creeks. We have a small native fern in our dry woodland called Ebony Spleenwort (Asplenium platyneuron) that grows right out of old rotted logs and nowhere else. They grow in heavy shade. When I tried transplanting some Ebony Spleenwort ferns out of the woodland and up into the dappled shade in a sandier soil (the woodland soil is rich and humusy for about 8-10" on top of red clay subsoil) closer to the house, they struggled for a couple of years and then died. I learned my lesson and have left them undisturbed in the woodland ever since. Still, I think if somebody had an ornamental pond in heavy to dappled shade, ferns likely would be happy growing adjacent to that ornamental pond. Sometimes you can add products like Hydro-Gel to sandier soils to help them hold enough moisture for some ferns, but that's more trouble than I want to go to in order to plant a fern that is inevitably still likely to struggle in our typical dry summer weather in my part of the state.

    I have a list of ferns from one of Loretta Aaron's columns from the 1990s and she listed these ferns for Oklahoma: Cinnamon fern, Lady fern, Maidenhair fern, Toothed Wood Fern and Japanese Shield Fern.

    Sooner Plant Farm carries several ferns and I often check their website to see what they are growing to sell here (they also sell over the internet so you may see plants on their website that would be happier elsewhere than here) or, depending on where you live in Oklahoma, happier in some parts of OK but maybe not in yours. The ferns currently featured on their website are: Japanese Painted Fern, Autumn Fern, Tassle Fern, Ghost Fern, Ostrich Fern and "Lady in Red", which has lovely red stems. If you read the descriptions on their website for each of these ferns, they'll tell you what kind of soil each needs.

    I have changed the way I garden a lot since 2005. I no longer use a misting system (I think they are great for adding moisture to the air and for attracting hummingbirds who like to play in the mist) to keep picky plants like ferns happy here in drought-plagued southcentral OK where we seem to stay in drought for a significant portion of most every year. Instead, I grow tougher plants that don't need a misting system to give them the higher relative humidity values they need in the summer months. I think folks in eastern OK and northeastern OK probably would have the best success with ferns since they usually have tons of humidity there, but lots of ferns do well in central OK as well, provided you give them the sort of soil they need and have them in full to dappled shade.

    I do not grow ferns in containers. I used to have them in hanging baskets on our home's large wraparound porch (with a drip irrigation system to water them constantly and a misting system to keep the air around them moist). They looked great in spring and early summer, but increasingly struggled as the heat (and inevitable summer drought) dragged on throughout July and August, and often September. I felt like all I was doing was slowly torturing them to death and I loved them too much to keep trying to grow them in such tough conditions.

    One fern that tolerates southern Oklahoma's dry air and high temperatres better than the regular Boston fern is Dallas fern, bred by Casa Flora in Texas. It is one of the few ferns I've ever grown that didn't instantly start shedding leaves when moved indoors in the autumn. It is smaller and more compact than the regular Boston fern and I've only grown it in containers, back when I grew ferns in containers on the porch.

    MOBOT includes several ferns on their list of selected perennials for Oklahoma. I'll find that webpage and link it below.


    Selected Perennials for Oklahoma


    If I wanted to grow ferns in the ground here, I'd do a ton of soil improvement first and put in a drip irrigation system on a timer to keep them moist in the summer, especially if I was going to be away on vacation in the summer and there was a chance they'd get too dry.

    Nowadays, with perpetual drought plaguing us almost yearly, I focus more on plants native to the Oklahoma prairies and woodland and tolerant of clay soil. Even when well-amended, clay soil is still clay soil, and since I have to grow with the conditions I have and the weather I have here, ferns are no longer on my list of things I grow. Even the native ones in our woodland are a sort of hit-and-miss grower. Some years I see them, and other times when drought has dragged on for several years, I don't see them at all. Each time I think they've probably all died for good, we'll have a wet spring (like we had this year) and they'll reappear. I guess that's how they survive here----thriving in the good years and somehow just barely hanging on through the bad years. When they reappear after being gone for a few dry years, I assume they sprouted from spores, but it could be their roots lie semi-dormant and come back whenever there's enough moisture to do so. In some parts of OK, you'll see ferns literally growing out of rock, often near little water falls or springs and I think that's cool, but I don't have that sort of moisture here.

    Hope this helps,

    Dawn


  • lkbradley13067
    8 years ago

    Thanks. I live in grove oklahoma on Grand lake. I think I'll give it a try. It's either try planting them outside or toss the 20 ferns from my enclosed porch in the trash.

  • nowyousedum
    8 years ago

    What an awesome thread! This list is invaluable!

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    8 years ago

    I think that in Grove you probably do have a really good situation for ferns since most years there's enough rain and lots of humidity to go with it.

    nowyousedum, Glad you like it. This is a really old thread, and I haven't even read back through the list, but the plants on it generally do fine from the counties that line I-35 and go eastward. The further west or southwest in OK you go from I-35, then the odds begin to dwindle for some of the things on this list as some of them would struggle in SW or far western OK's heat and dry air most years.

    Dawn

  • evanstoncircle
    7 years ago

    For all of you posting on this site, Thank you. This is my first post ever on any site so I hope this works. I realized after I began to read this thread that it began in 2008-09. Here it is spring of 2016. I hope you are all still reading and posting.

    I was very happy to see the N, E, S, W planting list. We are moving to Tulsa in spring of 2017 with a bare yard except really old oaks that we are building around. It definitely has sides with pretty definite shade and sun. We are trying to NOT have any grass which means tons of perennial ground cover so I will be looking hard at the ground cover list. Also for bushy flowering plants, I did not see azaleas, hydrangeas, hawthornes or hellebores in any of the comments as I could recall. I would like some "evergreen" shrubs as well. So far leaning toward one of the laurels. Any Ideas?

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    7 years ago

    Do you know what your soil pH is, and do you know if your soil is sandy loam, sand, clay, caliche clay/rock or whatever? The plants that will do well for you will depend a great deal of what sort of soil pH you have and on what kind of drainage the soil has.

  • themutterlinda
    6 years ago

    Hey Oklahoma Green thumbs. So I am coming to my sons IN OKC who purchased a house last year. We already did the groundwork for the landscaaping with rock, landscaping bricks and all the fun stuff. This year we wanted to focus on getting the plants in the ground.. He only has room for about 3 or 4 nice shrubs or something. What do you receommend for preparing the ground. There is so much red clay in his dirt. I saw the list for the east side of a home. But if you had to narrow it down. He says he wants a little color not just a green shrub. L

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    6 years ago

    Lots of red clay is hard to handle because it drains so poorly. Before I planted anything, I'd dig a hole a foot or so down and fill it with water and then watch to see how long it takes it to drain. Having said that, we have red clay and the shrubs we've planted in it have done well----hollies, nandina, wax myrtles (might not be cold hardy in OKC as they are marginally hardy where I live about 110-120 miles south of OKC), crape myrtles, etc. The Black Diamond crape myrtles have a dark purple/blackish foliage and I believe there's 5 different varieties that bloom in different shades. The ones we grow have bright red foliage. Many nandinas have foliage in shades other than green. American Beautyberry grows well in clay and its lilac-colored berries are stunning, but it is deciduous. Berberry comes in both red-leaved and golden yellow-leaved cultivars. I don't know how much you'll find in nurseries here in mid-summer as most of the planting here is not done in the midst of the hot season.

    We prepared our groundfor planting shrubs by rototilling lots of compost into it. You could achieve the same with any purchased bagged product meant to be added to soil to break up the clay and make it drain better. We've used a bagged product before that is sold as a soil conditioner---sometimes under that name and sometimes just sold as a fine bark/humus mix. Mushroom compost, often sold in bags here, is a good soil amendment too.

    Hope this helps,

    Dawn

  • Rhonda Tomlinson
    5 years ago

    It has been roughly two years since anyone has posted on this thread and I hope this is seen.


    I live in NW Pottawatomie county, OK. We bought our place about 5 years ago and have 17.5 acres right in the middle of nowhere. As we have spent the last 5 years remodeling the inside of our home and this is the spring/summer we are tackling the outside. Our house is brick with lots of wood trim that is in need repair or replacing. Once that is finished I am wanting to paint the brick. (not everyone's cup of tea but not a fan of the red/orange/black brick)

    We have a sidewalk that goes around our house with the exception of about 50 feet to complete the entire circumference of the house, it stops on the east side and picks back up on the northwest corner which then extends from the back porch to the shop. Where the sidewalk is in comparison to the house on the west and southwest corner leaves a nice 4 to 5 foot yard wide yard/flower bed space. Because there is zero shade on the west side of the house and a single large river birch on the southeast corner, most all plants will have to withstand the microwave effect from the brick retaining heat. I am at a loss as to what to plant and this where I could use some advice. There are 3 bedroom windows on the westside so plenty of room to plant in between with a tall shrub. I have been told Rose of Sharons do well in Oklahoma but I am unsure how will they will do against the brick wall.

    I do not want anything that will have thorns like barbary, 8 grandkids and a sidewalk going around the house equals lots of traffic, playing, pushing and shoving and I really don't want one of them shoved or to fall into a thorn bush. Nor can we have any type of juniper, one of the kids had an allergic reaction to one many years ago so they stay clear of those.

    We have had a small garden between the house and shop for the last 3 years that has always produced well, we had soil samples sent to OSU, and amend the soil as need for the garden every other year. However, much of the yard and around the house is clay, clay that will hold water for 30 -50 mins. It has taken 3 years for two crape myrtles to reach over knee high, planted 40 yards from the house on the eastside, I expect that is due to lack of my watering skills or a water source on this side of the house. The mass majority of the eastside of home is fenced yard for our inside dogs. I am not concerned about planting anything on the westside that might harm them as they are never let out to run unless we are with them, because they forget their names when they are outside and have often ran into to the cattle or horse field and have promptly been chased back across the piped fence dividing line to the yard.

    ANY help will greatly be appreciated. Thanks, Rhoni Ann

  • hazelinok
    5 years ago

    Hi Rhoni. If Joanna Gaines can paint brick, YOU can paint brick too! Right?


    I have a very narrow bed on the west side of our house. It does get hot. No shade. I've planted ornamental peppers there in the past, but right now it's just mostly Cannas, daylilies, and some comfrey. Those plant did well last year.

    Someone with more experience will probably come along and have more advice. I'm still trying to figure it all out myself. Just starting the 5th year on our property...and we've had the remodeling, etc. too.


    Maybe wherever you would like to plant a shrub, etc., you could start dumping compost/wood chips/leaves/chicken bedding/manure on that spot. A year of that makes a difference as I've recently found when I planted elderberries last week.


  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    Hi Rhoni Ann,

    Lots of people are painting red/orangey-red brick homes nowadays. If you're a fan of the Fixer-Upper TV show on HGTV, you've probably noticed that Chip and Joanna Gaines have totally transformed the exterior of many brick homes by painting that red/red-orange brick in all sorts of lovely shades of gray, creamy white or beige. After they add new trim and sometimes shutters and window boxes (depending on the style of the home and the look they're going for), along with new landscaping, those homes look just as transformed on the exterior as they are on the interior. Keep in mind that once you paint your brick, assuming you are going with a lighter color, it will reflect heat and light, but I have found there are lots of plants which grow well on the hotter west and south sides of homes that what a person might expect.

    First of all, if you will amend your clay with compost or some other organic material before you plant, then your plants will do so much better that it will blow your mind and you won't have to water nearly as much. We have dense, thick red clay (the kind you could use to make clay pots) that had zero organic matter when I tested it when we moved here in 1999. When they dug the holes for our percolation test for our septic system when we built our house, most all of the water remained in the holes after 24-hours, which explains why we have a lagoon instead of leach lines.

    Along our south and west facing walls, cannas have done really well in only lightly amended clay. If you plant the tall ones that get 4-7' tall, they will form their own mini-wall along the bring wall, and they don't really mind the heat as long as you water them occasionally in summer. They die back in winter, but you can cut off the ugly dead foliage at the ground so you don't have to look at it all winter long. Cannas are very strong, resilient plants, fitting into my favorite category of plants that I describe in this manner: they won't die and you can't kill them. In front of those taller cannas, you could the short, compact evergreen shrubs of your choice so you'd have something green there year-round. Some of the shorter varieties of hollies would work, and hollies come with many different leaf shapes from the very small leaves of yaupon hollies to the larger leaves of other forms of holly. If you don't want evergreen shrubs on the west side of the house, you could plant daylilies, lantana, gomprena (aka globe amaranth), zinnias, cosmos and some perennial members of the salvia family. All of these do well in well-amended, well-draining soil and only need moderate amounts of water in summer as long as they are well mulched. Or, you could plant ground cover type plants that thrive in full sun. Purple wintercreeper is a lovely greenish groundcover that is low maintenance. We just cut ours back to the ground with the string trimmer once or twice a year. It turns purplish-green in the cold season. Its flowers are not very obvious but then they give you lovely little berries.

    Hollies, by the way, are one of my favorite plants for clay soil because once they are established many of them are really drought-tolerant as well as heat-tolerant.

    If you like crape myrtles they are very heat-tolerant and come in all sorts of sizes, from more tree-like forms that can attain 20-40' Crape Myrtle Trails--Varietiesin height to weeping forms only a couple of feet tall. Be sure to purchase named crape myrtles varieties so you can Google those varieties before you buy to ensure you're getting the right size for your area. Sometimes the ones sold at places like Wal-Mart don't give a variety name on the tag, so you have no idea what you're getting. There's nothing worse than planting a big variety of crape myrtle in an area that is only appropriate for a small to medium sized one because you'll spend tons of time trying to prune back the big one to keep it small enough. Depending on the color you ultimately choose to paint your brick, you might like some of the Black Diamond series of crape myrtles with their purplish-black foliage. They would look striking against a lighter colored wall and they don't get too large. To give you an idea of the many kinds of crape myrtles available, I'm going to link the page of the Crape Myrtle Trails of McKinney, TX, which is my favorite website for Crape Myrtle information.

    I haven't tried Rose of Sharon on the west side of the house, but it probably would be alright. I have several kinds of hardy hibiscus in the border around our large veggie garden and they are both heat tolerant and drought tolerant. They are growing in heavily amended clay in raised beds, but there's a couple of smaller ones at the lower north end of our heavily sloping garden and they are equally heat and drought tolerant, growing at grade level in soil only lightly amended.

    Another perennial flower (often considered a reseeding annual, but perennial in my garden) that doesn't mind the west side of a building is tall verbena, Verbena bonariensis. It is one of the most heat-tolerant and drought-tolerant plants I've ever grown and is a real butterfly magnet. I use lots of autumn sage (Salvia greggii) plants as they tolerate heat and plentiful sunshine. They are perennials and are semi-evergreen. Sometimes they bloom on and off throughout the winter here in zone 7b. I just shear them back pretty hard right before new growth begins in early Spring to keep them more compact and more manageable.

    There's tons of options for the west side of a house. Just avoid things like hydrangeas that must have afternoon shade in our climate and avoid plants that need perfect drainage.

    Good luck, and if you have more questions, I hope you'll ask them. Also, watch for the Master Gardener's plant sale in your county, which has a very active MG group that puts on a great plant sale in the Spring. This year's plant sale is May 11th. More info about it can be found on the website linked below.


    Pottawatomie County Extension Service Webpage

    The Master Gardeners have a display garden at the ag extension building and you might visit it to get some ideas.


    Dawn

  • Jeanne Mason
    3 years ago

    Hello! I have a garage wall that faces the west. It has had Japanese Boxwoods there for 35 years. I am getting too old to trim the Boxwoods, and am planning to have them pulled out. The flower bed is only 2 ft wide. What perennial would work in this area? I live in OKLA.

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