Never buy perennials

I'm trying to remember if I bought ANY of the plants and flowers in the front of my house... Oh just the Bloomerang lilac bush. That's thriving,  but still super tiny.

When we bought our house two years ago, one of the things I was really excited about was the "blank canvas." The previous owners had done NOTHING for landscaping. No flowers, no shrubs, nothing. (well, there is one big barberry bush against the backside of the garage, where nobody can really see it...) My aunt was our realtor, and as a housewarming gift she got us a couple of hibiscus plants and split a bunch of her irises.

                               
I can't believe how much they've taken off in the past two years! The hibiscus is HUGE -- I've been watching it flower every day for the last month and a half, and didn't take a single picture of the whole plant. :( But trust me when I say it's HUGE! And the irises... I was pleasantly surprised to discover both purple and yellow blooms. One of my favorite gardening memories? Bringing my two-day-old daughter home from the hospital and finding all our irises in bloom -- which they hadn't been when we left. :)

But today's topic -- never buy perennials! At least never buy any of the popular ones. (irises,  lilies,  daffodils,  sedum,  black-eyed susans,  coneflowers,  etc. etc. etc.) This time of year,  all you need to do is put out a plea on Facebook (I might even say to advertise on Craigslist,  but who knows how many plants you'd end up with!) that you're looking for perennials,  is anyone willing to split theirs with you?

I didn't even need to ask this year. I had a cousin message me that she was splitting her plants and wondered if I wanted any?

She even dropped them off at my door. I came home from work on Thursday to boxes and bags and buckets in my driveway...

                       



It's that time of year! Do you have any plans for new perennials in your garden or landscape? (don't buy them!!!)