I told you that we are are a pretty tight budget. Any money that’s not going to bills is going to our renovations.

Well, I’m afraid I may have had a little slip…

In my defense… it’s Dave’s fault. Dave doesn’t Facebook. I do. He asked me to go on Facebook Marketplace and see if anyone was selling a laundry/utility sink for a good price. This house doesn’t have one – the laundry drains right into a pipe. But the lack of a utility sink is a bit of a pain when you’re in the middle of a renovation… there’s only so much you can clean in a kitchen sink.

Anyway… their were no sinks that tickled his fancy… but I’m sure many of you know the rabbithole FB Marketplace can be…

I was mostly just scrolling and dreaming about all the garden decor and patio furniture I want and can’t afford… but then I came across a post for Butterfly Bushes. You know I had to leave my beautiful Miss Molly behind at the townhouse…

Generally, Butterfly Bushes sell for between $30 and $40 around here. So I couldn’t quite believe my eyes when I saw $10 in the price bar.

I clicked on the picture, thinking it might be one of those posts where they are selling several plants and they are $10 and up… and the Butterfly Bushes would be much more.

But nope… Butterfly Bushes…. $10. At a new nursery not too far from the house!

I figured they had to be small. That was okay. I don’t mind starting small if it saves a few dollars. And I’ve been missing Miss Molly quite a bit. Right now is prime Butterfly season. One of the neighbours here has a pretty pink one in her backyard, but I can only see it when I’m putting garbage in my garbage can. I needed one in MY yard!!!

I told Dave I was breaking budget on payday. I promised not to go crazy… but I HAD to check this place out!

Friday, after getting groceries, I headed out. Turns out, it’s not quite a new nursery. They’ve been in business since 2009, but they were solely wholesalers. But as you all know, COVID hit at a terrible time for nurseries. In April 2020, many of the nurseries around us were offering up plants for free, just so they wouldn’t end up in the garbage. When summer rolled around, some of them opened to the public for the first time, just to get rid of some stock.

Apparently this nursery did the same. I wish I had more money to spend, because I could have spent HOURS there. In the end, I stuck to Butterfly bushes, and came home with three.

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• Royal Red – Which isn’t really red at all but a slightly darker magenta than my old Miss Molly.
• White Profusion – I didn’t even know these came in white. I’ve only ever seen them in shades of pink and purple. This one has a noticeable scent, which is light and a little bit spicy.
• Black Knight – I had to have this one, not just for the Monty Python reference, but because I have a thing for deep, dark purple flowers.

Can you believe it??? Three bushes for less than what I paid for Miss Molly. And remember I thought they would be small? They aren’t. They are the same size Miss Molly was when I first bought her. I was doing a happy dance all the way home. (Well, a happy drive!)

I got them in the ground right away. No pictures, but I put the white one just outside the catio. As it gets bigger, it will provide some much need shade inside the catio, and it’s close enough to the sunporch that I should be able to enjoy the scent.

The other two I planted on either end of the line of lilies I put along the side fence. Each has at least one bloom spike, and I probably won’t get too much more from them this year… but next year… oh next year is going to be just grand!