They've got to eat but why our stuff?

A few weeks ago, I lamented to the Hubs that 4 of our flower plants in the front yard had died. I had just altered the timing of the watering from every other day for a half hour to an hour (the weather is getting warmer already). And as I inspected the watering tubes, I noticed that 4 of our plants were NOT going to revive. Too brown. Too shriveled. D-E-A-D!

So the other week when he had the day off he went to Lowes and purchased some new flowering plants. Tiny purple things. They looked cute. He and the Princess proudly worked some magic and the plants got into the ground in no time flat. The increased watering schedule helped out the remaining flowering plants that had been there since last year. But the new ones? They are....gone. As in no longer there. Actually, there's a stub in each spot where a flowering plant USED to be. I do believe the bunny rabbits that live in the neighborhood found these new and soft purple flowers and had a feast! I noticed the missing plants yesterday and decided that another trip to the gardening department was necessary.

This morning when the Princess and I went to Tarjay to return a couple items of clothing that were too roomy for her slight frame, we dropped by their gardening department. It's a small section compared to Home Depot or Lowes but the plants they had? Were CLEARLY labeled as "annuals" or "perennials". And they were even separated. So it was EASY to figure out which ones we wanted. I wanted a hearty flowering perennial that could take FULL SUN. Easy criteria, eh? The Princess actually found the plants we settled on. African Daisies. The ones we selected had purple/white flowers and were about 8 inches tall and 3 feet across at the base. So these weren't new sprouts (which was what the Hubs got).

When we got home, the Hubs and the Bear played "tennis" on the driveway. The Princess and I got to work to get the 4 plants into the ground. The originals we have are a dark burnt orange color in a daisy flowering pattern. So these purple flowers are a good match. And the Hubs commented how good the purple looked mixed in with the orange. That the colors offset each other well.

Hubs: How many did you buy?
Me: I got four of them. For the four empty spots we've got.
Hubs: They look good. You should have bought a few more. That Morning Glory near the garage is about gone.
Me: Well, we can get more.
Hubs: Yeah. I guess we should wait to see if those bunnies attack these new plants.
Me: That would be a good idea.
Hubs: If these plants survive the week, then we can go back next week and get a couple more.

Hopefully these plants will be okay. The yard looks SO much brighter. More curb appeal. I just hope those bunnies stay away!