Newly Planted Shrubs

The photo above is NOT my yard. It is the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, where I find inspiration and relaxation. We had a lovely trip when I finished teaching my summer class. Below is my addition of five honeysuckle 'Kodiak Orange' shrubs. That circle of dirt was a fire pit, which was too deep to be effective. We dug out a metal tractor tire insert and several bricks. Our plan is to have an above-ground fire pit area in the center. That's more digging, and I will wait for cooler weather since temps are in the 90s F this week. You can see that I water the shrubs (deeply, once a week) but not the grass. Not pictured are three serviceberry 'Regent.' The far left are native viburnum cranberry bush (five of them), the center is the honeysuckle, and the right is three hydrangea 'Limelight.' I know that the hydrangeas are not pollinator plants, but these are for myself. I have been consistently spraying the shrubs with repellent, so they haven't been eaten (yet). I'm trying to get a nice shady, naturalized area. It will never look like the Arboretum, but I'm hoping it will be a good place to relax.