Does this look white to you?

When we visited the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in the fall a couple of years ago, I was particularly impressed with the white mistflower that was in bloom then. The reason that I was impressed was that it seemed that every white bloom on the plant had a butterfly hanging on it! It was obviously a butterfly magnet plant and I needed one for my garden.

On a trip to the Antique Rose Emporium this past spring, I bought a plant that was labeled as white mistflower and installed in my garden and waited for its white blooms and the hordes of butterflies to appear. Instead, this is what I got.

Well, it is a mistflower and it is pretty, but it certainly isn't white!

Not even from this angle does it look white!

Which just goes to prove, I guess, that even when you purchase from the most reputable of vendors, there's always the possibility that a plant has been mislabeled. Perhaps the lesson is that if you want a particular color, you should purchase the plant when it is in bloom. That way you won't be disappointed.

You know, I think it's about time I paid Arbor Gate a visit once again. While the mistflowers are in bloom.