Whether it's color, easy care or year-round interest that your garden needs--hydrangeas are the answer.

 Mix them with perennials to extend the color, increase texture and add year-round interest to the garden. Use tree forms as focal points and accent plants, taller shrub forms as a screen or hedge and cultivars with colorful flowers, bark or fall color to help create interest in any corner of your landscape. Here are a few traditional and new favorites to consider:

Smooth, Hills of Snow, Snowball (Annabelle type) Hydrangeas

Hydrangea arborescens

• Shade garden, mixed border, dried flowers
• Grows 3 to 5’ tall and wider
• Prefers Partial shade, full sun if soil is kept moist
• Moist, Well-drained soil preferred
• Fertilize with low nitrogen/ organic fertilizer early spring to improve flowering
• Soil pH (acidity) does not influence flower color
• Blooms on new growth – prune during dormant season
• Varieties
  • Annabelle – large white flowers, 4’ tall x 5’ wide, tolerates full shade
  • Invincibelle® Spirit – Large pink, no matter the pH flowers
  • Incrediball® – Large round white flowers. 5’ tall and wide
• Pruning Tips
  • Prune late winter after the worst of winter has passed /early spring before growth begins (You’ll enjoy the winter interest & increased hardiness
    • OR prune in fall for a neater appearance over winter
  • Prune all stems back to 12 to 15” above the ground, then prune half of these back to ground level for less floppy growth
    • OR All stems back to several inches above the ground – results in floppier growth

Panicle Hydrangea

Hydrangea paniculata

• Screen, hedge, specimen, mixed border
• Dwarf varieties: 3 to 6’ tall & wide, Larger varieties: 10’+ tall & wide
• Performs best in full sun will tolerate partial shade
• Moist, Well-drained soil preferred
• Soil pH (acidity) does not influence flower color
• Blooms on new growth – prune during dormant season if needed
• Varieties
  • Bobo® - 30 to 36” tall x 3 to 4’ wide, compact mounded plant with lots of long lasting large white flowers that eventually fade to a purplish pink
  • Fire Light® - 6 to 8’ tall and wide, flowers emerge creamy-white age to vivid red
  • Limelight – 6 to 10’ x 5 to 6’ wide, lime green flowers fading to rose
  • Little Lime® – 3 to 5’ tall and wide. Lime green flowers fading to rose
  • Little Lime Punch® - 3-5’ tall and wide, flowers emerge lime green and change from white to light pink to Hawaiian Punch red from the bottom to the top
  • Little Lamb – 6 to 8’ x 4 to 6’ wide, large fluffy white flowers
  • Pink Winky® –6 to 8’ x 5 to 6’ wide, large, white & pink flowers fade to dk pink
  • Quick Fire® – 6 to 8’ tall and wide – earlier bloom, white to pink to rosy red
  • Little Quick Fire® - 3 – 5’ tall and wide, early blooming, white flowers mature to pinky-red as summer progresses
  • Quick Fire Fab® - 6 -8” tall x 5-6’ wide, early blooming, showy white flowers age to blush pink, bright pink and red from the bottom up
  • Tardiva – 8 to 12’ x 5 to 7’ wide – late bloom, lacy white flowers fades to purplish- pink
  • Vanilla Strawberry - 6 to 8’ x 4 to 5’ wide – large white flowers fade to pink and then a strawberry red
• Pruning Tips
  • Minimal Pruning Needed
    • Thinning plants to 5 to 10 primary shoots will encourage larger flowers
    • Pruning to ground level will result in weak floppy growth Prune in late winter after the worst of winter has passed /early spring before growth begins

Bigleaf Hydrangea

Hydrangea macrophylla

• Shrub or mixed border
• Grows 3 to 6’ tall & wide
• Grow in full sun with moist soil, afternoon shade
• Moist, Well-drained soil preferred
• Soil pH (acidity) influences flower color
  • Blue flowers in acidic soil
    • Aluminum sulfate (per label directions spring through July)
  • Pink flowers in alkaline soil
• Blooms on old growth – Those at Pasquesi bloom on old and new growth
  • Improve Flowering on Endless Summer® & Twist-n-Shout®
    • Moist, not wet soil spring through summer
    • One application of Milorganite fertilizer in spring. It contains plant available – non leaching phosphorous (P). Plus, as the microorganisms release the nutrients from Milorganite, they also release some of the P bound to our soil – P promotes flowering
• Varieties
  • Blushing Bride® – 3-6’ tall & wide, pure white semi-double flowers that mature to blush pink in high pH soils, flowers on old and new wood
  • Bloomstruck® - 3-4’ tall x 4-5’ wide, vivid rose-pink flowers in high pH soils, red-purple stems, red leaf stems and veins, blooms on old and new wood
  • Endless Summer® – 3 to 4’ tall & wide, spherical blooms on old and new wood
  • Nantucket Blue® – 4 to 6’ tall & wide. Pink flowers in high pH soil, blooms on old and repeatedly on new wood
  • Summer Crush® - 18-36” tall & wide, raspberry red flowers in high pH soils, blooms on old and new wood
  • Twist-n-Shout® – 3 to 4’ tall & wide, lace cap flowers on old and new wood
• Pruning
  • Allow plants to stand for winter
  • Remove winter damage back to healthy buds
  • Remove winter-killed stems (this may be all of them) to the ground
  • No further pruning is usually needed in our area

Oakleaf Hydrangea

Hydrangea quercifolia

• Shade garden, four season interest, hedge, mixed border
  • Deep green oak shaped leaves
  • Bronze, maroon, and purple fall foliage
  • Cinnamon colored exfoliating bark
• Grows up to 8 feet tall and wide
• Grow in partial shade or sun
• Moist, Well-drained soil preferred
• Blooms on old wood

• Varieties
  • Alice – 5 to 8’ tall & wide, large 10-14” white flowers fading to pink then brown Bronze, maroon, purple fall foliage & orange exfoliating bark
  • Pee Wee – 3 to 4’ x 2.5 to 3’ wide, compact, less suckering, flowers white, fade to pink, then brown - Bronze, maroon, purple fall foliage & orange exfoliating bark
• Pruning – Minimal
  • Remove deadwood
  • Prune after flowering if need/want to control the size

Written by gardening expert, Melinda Myers. Melinda Myers is a nationally recognized gardening expert with more than 30 years of horticulture experience. She is a wealth of knowledge and we are pleased to share Melinda’s gardening tips with you!

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