Before we all knew we were going to be housebound in a global pandemic known as COVID19, I had ordered some plants. Today the first of them arrived and the nursery did not disappoint.

A couple of years ago now I discovered a small boutique nursery called Gardens Oy Vey. They are in Tennessee. I had come upon them in my hunt for more Japanese and Korean mountain hydrangeas which are often hard to find. I used to buy them from a nursery in Virginia called Lazy S Farm, but the owners of this glorious place retired and closed the farm. To the best of my knowledge no one ever bought their business. Lazy S Farm had introduced me to Korean Mountain Hydrangeas and a whole host of other shrubs and perennials and I loved that nursery!

Anyway one of the only other places I could find that actually knew what they were talking about when it came to mountain hydrangeas and even native hydrangeas was this Gardens Oy Vey. They don’t just sell hydrangeas they sell a full complement of interesting plants. And they’re very nice people.

So I had placed another order for two more hydrangeas from them. What I ordered was Penny Mac and Baby Lace.

Penny Mac is a big blue blowsy hydrangeas macrophylla reminiscent of those glorious big hydrangeas you see in the gardens in the Hamptons on Long Island.

The Hamptons made me go from liking hydrangeas to falling in love with them. They are everywhere in the landscape of the Hamptons. In gardens, in pots next to pools, in pots on patios, and even some hydrangea hedges. This post is peppered with photos I have taken over the years in the Hamptons of hydrangeas.

The second hydrangea I ordered is called Baby Lace. It is a white hydrangea paniculata. This hydrangea will get white lacy blooms on very dark green foliage. I also bought it because it is a rather compact shrub and will be about 4‘ x 4‘ upon maturity. I got it to replace a cornus that was totally in the wrong spot – a golden showers pagoda dogwood which has now been moved to the edge of the woods in my woodland gardens where it will be able to grow with unfettered abandon.

The Baby Lace is budding but hasn’t leafed out yet. The Penny Mac arrived already leafing out. Both were in 3 gallon containers so they are a good size. They arrived in pots perfectly packed not a leaf damaged in transit from the nursery in Tennessee. Gardens Oy Vey always does an impeccable job when shipping. And they always include comprehensive planting instructions and plant descriptions. They are a class act.

I know local nurseries probably won’t be happy with me that I bought these out-of-state hydrangeas but they just don’t carry the variety on a regular basis that I look for. And I like the relationships I have even with the out of state nurseries I patronize which are more in the category of specialty nurseries. As a matter of fact one of the things I like best about the specialty nurseries is they keep an eye on what you have purchased and will generally speaking let you know when things in those categories come in.

Given the fact we’re all on lockdown and I want to keep gardening I’m really glad my plants are arriving!

I think it is a rather chilly and damp day today. So I won’t be outside playing in the garden. But I will delete from my windows in noticing the daffodils that keep opening every day!

Keep calm and garden on!