my sympathy about your dog; it's losing a friend. The velvet plants have some of the fastest growing roots so give it a few days and it should perk right up. You'll want to keep it pinched back to make it bushy and the old stems can get woody; I found taking and rooting cuttings was very easy way to keep the plant young. Has interesting yellow flowers but they don't smell nice!

This is my first time posting on this sight but with a BS from NC State in Agricultural Business and a Master Gardener certification, I'm pretty sure I have the knowledge to post a modest comment. I don't know why people have to get so nasty to one another and judgmental about where someone buys their plants. Its just gardening, people! I know this post was a long time ago but I stumbled upon it and thought I'd share. I ordered purple passions from Michigan bulb 6 years ago. I was trying to add to my hydrangea collection. A few didn't make it because of me and a few didn't make it because of Michigan bulb. But Michigan bulb swiftly replaced all that didn't hold up without stress or scrutiny. They are not "regular ole Hydrangea macrophyllas." I have Nikkos, Penny Macs, Oregon Prides, Lady in Reds blah, blah, blah. Purple Passions are distinctive in that the blooms are a deep purple like I have never seen on any other hydrangea. I have them as a woodland border because I live in the coastal south. But my neighbors have them in the hot sun and they look just as lovely. Mine are in well drained soil that is mostly composted pine needles and leaves. I prune them in August after there blooms start looking shotty. You have to water them often at first but once they are established they are care free, easy to propagate and lovely. If you're nervous to put them in the ground because they're scrawny, pot them outside for the fall, and put them in your garage for a dormant winter.

I will confirm that this plant originated in the old Salvia garden at Cabrillo College (the garden had to be moved to make way for a parking lot!) I believe it was thought to be a cross between S. gesneriiflora and S. guaranitica. I'm sorry to report that Jean Coria, for whom this Salvia was named, died last November. She was the heart and soul of the "Salvia Department" at Strybing Arboretum, in San Francisco, for many years. I'm glad I was able to work with her...she is greatly missed!

Thanks everyone! It's been a really difficult year for getting pics of RdV. Her blooms don't last long to begin with but this year with the heat and all it seems like they only last a moment and phffft...gone! But I go out to take photos sometimes 3 times a day so eventually I got a good one, lol! I'm sure my neighbors think I'm nuts. I tried to explain once to someone who stopped that the blooms don't stay the same and you have to catch them at their best or it's gone forever. And then the light is always changing too so that changes the picture as well. I don't think they really got it though.