Still looking for a replacement for my Choisya ternata, which died after 20 years of good and loyal services, I paid a little visit to the big garden center not far from here (T..t). Although I had my own little list of unusual shrubs, I fell for a very … ordinary specimen. It is a Viburnum tinus ‘Eve Price’, whose pretty blooming attracted my attention. I didn’t know that there were so many different varieties of this shrub, very common in gardens and better known under the common name of laurustinus. I had actually grown 2 specimens in the garden, before the 2014 extension, which I had not kept because they had a lopsided habit. A gardening friend, who had suggested other choices when I asked for advice, called the foliage of this shrub boring, outside of flowering season. I pretty much agree, but in the meantime ‘Eve Price’ has been planted in the west corner of the north border, where its flowers attract bees. Now we just have to wait for it to grow up to fill in that somewhat empty corner.
Second impulse purchase on the same day and at the same place full of temptations… I have told you in detail the tragic story of the sudden death of my Daphne x transatlantica ‘Eternal Fragrance’. The cuttings from its self layering seem to survive (just), but they are very fragile. So we stumbled upon a nice specimen of this irresistible plant and … we couldn’t resist. A new Daphne x transatlantica ‘Eternal Fragrance’ took place in the garden, close to its former location. And it is very fragrant.