I went to Lowe’s today to get epoxy and came away with:

1. A 1-quart Penny Mac hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Penny Mac’)
2. A 1-quart Sister Theresa hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Sister Theresa’)
3. 2 orange mints
4. 2 larkspur ‘Summer Blues’ (Delphinium grandiflorum ‘Summer Blues’)
5. 1 ‘Miss Kim’ lilac (Syringa patula ‘Miss Kim’)
6. and 3 Japanese painted ferns (Athyrium nipponicum‘Pictum’)

I had thought to get just the epoxy and to see if a white Camellia sasanqua might be on sale, that I could use in the under-construction white garden. There were camellias on sale, but only japonicas, with which I have less luck; I suspect the sasanquas compete better with the roots of my oaks (in my garden, it’s impossible to be planted far away from oak roots). The only white variety they had was called “White Debutante.” I couldn’t bring myself to purchase it, knowing that if I did, it would succeed and I would have to spend the next 30 years being embarrassed by my White Debutante. Really, who names these things?

I did put back the doublefile viburnum, knowing that I have to get more ground cleared in order to plant more things.

I should never purchase plants unless I have the time and space to immediately get them into the ground. I did fairly well today. My container plants played musical chairs: My Viburnum carlesii now resides in the ground in the white garden, and the variegated English ivy that had filled out the viburnum container is now skirting Penny Mac.  The orange mints (along with the spearmint and the chocolate mint) are naturally in containers, lest I wish to return the garden to the condition in which it came to me. All the houseplants came outside yesterday for a haircut and a snack. The deck will never look like the entrance to Great Dixter, but I can pretend.

The Japanese painted ferns are installed in the white garden, and Sister Theresa will be once I get some more ground cleared. The larkspurs are tucked into tiny pockets in the blue-and-yellow garden, just next to the foxgloves that are planning to bloom soon. Miss Kim will go into the pink-purple-and-yellow garden this weekend. Between now and then, I’ll need to keep her watered, as she is bursting out of her pot (which may be why she came so cheaply).

I’m hoping the rain finally comes this afternoon….we really need it.

Lastly, a few months ago I bought two Canna ‘Cleopatra’ bulbs and planted them in the hot border. No sight of them yet, but I’ll let you know.