New plants!

Of course I've been acquiring new plants recently, why wouldn't I? Just because it's the hottest part of summer and I have literally dozens of plants still in their nursery pots on my driveway, doesn't mean that I shouldn't continue to feed my obsession, right?

So I thought I'd take a look at some of the newest flora that I've added. A few of these I may have covered briefly in other posts, but most of this should be new (here). Starting with 'Chocolate Chip' Ajuga above. It's been around for a few years but I've only this year decided that the "wild" Ajuga growing in my garden isn't enough, and how could I resist those cute little leaves?

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Besides, it's going to look great with Ajuga 'Caitlin's Giant':

I bought a second one of these since I wasn't sure how well the one I put in the shady spot would do -- I know that Ajuga likes sun. Here it will get plenty and hopefully will be spreading fast enough that I'll be able to take some divisions and spread this around.

Imagine these big leaves mixed with the tiny ones of 'Chocolate Chip' and the regular-sized ones of the "normal" varieties that I already grow -- it's going to look great! (or maybe a mess...)

Pulmonaria 'High Contrast' is looking quite nice:

I just need to remember to keep it well-watered. I didn't know that this will bloom in the spring -- just saw a photo.

Mukdenia rossii 'Karasuba' has leaves that will turn red in the fall:

It appears to be starting to do so already on a leaf or two. Not enough water? This was a plant that I was unfamiliar with until I spotted it at Greenscape Gardens recently.

Looks good in this revamped bed, doesn't it?

Another Greenscape purchase was Brunnera macrophylla ‘Sea Heart’ but I'm unable to show you that one because it died in less than 2 weeks. I'm not really sure why as I grow other Brunnera and this one didn't dry out. Stayed too wet maybe? I'm afraid to try it again...

Persicaria 'Golden Arrow' found a home...

...not sure that it works next to Persicaria 'Painters Palette', but it was the only available spot:

I can move it in the fall or next year if needed.

Next to that is turtlehead, Chelone obliqua:

I got this from my friend Mike who said that it never blooms for him. It starts, and then the blooms don't open.

I can kind of see that happening, as the tips of the buds seem to be turning brown. Wonder what's going on? I'll give it a bit more time.

Brace yourself for what may be the worst plant photo you'll see this year on INWIG:

It's calamint -- Calamintha nepeta. Supposed to bloom non-stop all summer, it appears to be stopping. Bees love the blooms on this plant, so I gave it a try. Maybe it will look better next year?

A plant that was put into the ground last year and then forgotten is considered to be "new" in my book...

...and that describes my Lobelia cardinalis. I'm actually wondering how it survived in the heavy soil and baking temperatures of this location. I've sited this plant in "better" spots before and it never survived the winter, but it did here? Plants are weird.


What's not weird is receiving a box from a fellow gardener!

Loree (of Danger Garden) completed our plant trade by sending a few pre-discussed plants, but like all good plant trades there were surprises in there too. First off, seeds!

Some Opuntia seeds in there and some other things that I still need to research. I'll start the cactus seeds ASAP because I love watching baby cactus grow, and sometimes it takes weeks or longer for them to germinate.

What else did Loree send?

A tiny, baby Tetrapanax! If you're familiar with this plant, you'll realize just how miniscule this baby is.

Also, Euphorbia rigida:

This looks so good in Loree's garden I'm eager to give it a try. How will it do in our winters? Will rabbits devour it as they do with other Euphorbias that I've tried growing? Time will tell...

Three different Agaves!

I didn't know that Loree grew Agaves! Just kidding of course, she has loads of them -- their spiky leaves helped inspire her blog's name -- and has shared (from left to right) Agave americana, Agave bracteosa, and Agave parryi 'JC Raulston'. These will all live in pots for me and spend winters indoors. It will be nice to have some small pots of agaves to overwinter instead of just the big ones that I inherited.

Finally, what left her garden as a single two-nodule division of Tephrocactus articulatus v. papyracanthus...

...but decided that it wanted to be two individual plants somewhere in transit. (If insects or spiders ever combined with plants, this is what I expect they'd look like.)

This is a strange one, but I'm excited about it! (About all of these!) Thanks Loree!

I know better than to say that these will be the last new plants of the year in my garden because new plants are always exciting, and I always seem to get more as summer winds down and fall begins...

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