You've found the famous Dave's Garden website! Join this friendly global community that shares tips and ideas for home and gardens, along with seeds and plants!
Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site.
Login
If you don't have an account yet, visit the registration page to sign up.
The word hydrangea come from the Greek “hydra” meaning water and “angeoa” meaning vessel which refers to this plant's thirst for water and the shape of its seed pod. In this series of articles I’ll discuss the plant's characteristics, fertilization, site location, planting, pruning, winter protection in the colder climes. I’ll also cover the different types and how to adjust your soil pH to suit this group of plants.
I’ve been growing hydrangeas for several years; it’s been a constant learning experience, I have several species and cultivars and each is unique in their own special way.
Site Selection
The ideal location will have morning sun and afternoon shade. In USDA zone 6 and lower you can get away with a little more sun than in warmer regions.
Hydrangeas will not thrive in heavy shade. If grass won’t grow in a particular area because of shade hydrangeas won’t either.
If you have a spot in mind that has full sun you can use a Pee Gee (Hydrangea paniculata 'Grandiflora') hydrangea. It will tolerate full sun as long as it gets plenty of water.
Pee Gee 'Grandflora"
Oak leaf hydrangeas (hydrangea Quercifolla) will also grow in full sun, but the blooms will fade a lot quicker than if it has some afternoon shade.
Oak Leaf Hydrangea
Soil Requirements
After you have decided on a site the first step is to take a soil sample from that location and get it tested.
Hydrangeas are acid loving plants and do best with a pH in the 5.0-5.5 range. This pH range will give you blue flowers; if you desire pink flowers you will need to increase the pH up to the 6.0-6.5 range. The soil test will give you a benchmark and you can adjust from there.
Planting
When the soil amending is complete dig a planting hole twice as large as the pot your plant is in. Sprinkle a handful of bone meal or super phosphate into the hole. This will encourage root growth.
Mix up a batch of compost or other organic material in a wheel barrow with the soil you removed from the planting hole to a 1:1 ratio. Plant the hydrangea and backfill with your mix and water in well. Mulch to a depth of 2-3 inches with organic mulch. This will conserve moisture and deter weeds.
Now comes the most important part of growing hydrangeas successfully. WATER-WATER-WATER.You should water daily for the first 3-4 weeks after planting. After that do not allow the soil to dry out, water as needed. Be especially watchful during hot periods.
Fertilization
In the warmer areas (USDA zone 7 and higher) this plant does best when fertilized twice a year. Apply a balanced fertilizer in May and July. In cooler areas (USDA zone 6 and lower) apply fertilizer in June. I like to use Wondergro this is a 13-13-13 with sulfur. I use this product on all my acid loving plants.
A good top dressing of compost 2-3 times a season will also help your plant stay healthy.
Stay tuned for the next installment on hydrangeas. I’ll discuss the different types and pruning.
About Paul Rodman
Paul Rodman has been gardening for over 40 years. He is an Advanced Master Gardener, and American Rose Society Consulting Rosarian. He is currently president of the Western Wayne County Master Gardener Association in Wayne County, Michigan.
Rodman is the garden columnist for The News Herald newspaper, in Southgate, Michigan. He has also written for the OrganicGardening.com web site.
He has lectured on various gardening topics throughout southeastern Michigan.
His favorite pastime is teaching children about gardening. For the past several years he has conducted classes for second grade students teaching them about subjects ranging from vermi-composting to propagation.
Posted by Milanart (from Westminster, CA) on June 9, 2008 at 7:44 PM:
A gift of a blue hydrangea this Easter is still looking good, in the 8" pot it arrived in, tho no flowers anymore. It has been inside my home, but I could place it outside.Can I plant it in a larger pot, or in the yard, and expect any flowers this season? My established pink bushes are blooming now (June) in S. Cal.
...
Posted by paulgrow (from Allen Park, MI) on June 10, 2008 at 6:09 PM:
I've heard for years that florist hydrangeas won't thrive once the blooms fade.
That being said I was given 6 florist hydrangeas last year. I planted them out side, thay have survived the Michigan winter, they have fully leafed out.
Still waiting to see whether or not they will bloom or not.
The color of the blooms depend on the acidity of the soil.
Paul
This message was edited Jun 10, 2008 6:10 PM
...
Subject: Camelias and Hydrangeas location
Posted by Newlywed (from Kernersville, NC) on March 24, 2008 at 2:17 PM:
We have moved to a new house. The back yard has lots of shade, very little morning sun, the front yard is full sun, one side is shade the other is a driveway. I just received a Camelia, which I have heard does well in a protected area and shouldn't be placed on the North side of the house.
There are 3 other Hydrangeas in the back yard that didn't do well at all and I don't know if this because of the early frost/drought or they need to be moved. We are in central North Carolina.
Can anyone help. I am a newcomer to the site.
Thanks much!
...
Subject: This site is very important for me!!!!
Posted by haydee_1 (from Rosario
(Argentina)) on January 18, 2008 at 12:12 AM:
Thanks. I can learn a lot of about the plants. I really love them. I think this site is excellent.
Haydée Lucía.
...
Subject: hydrangeas
Posted by ellieshay (from Somerset, OH) on January 15, 2008 at 10:18 AM:
Mine are planted in areas where they receive lots of sun most of the day. I was unaware they needed some shade when I planted them, but they seem to be doing well. I do give them water every day or sometimes two days apart. Does this help to make up for the lack of shade? Should I consider moving them? Thanks for any advice you can give me.
...
Subject: hydrangeas
Posted by fear (from london
(Canada)) on January 14, 2008 at 1:02 PM:
could you talk about climbing ones ? mine is very slow growing & I DON;T KNOW WHY. thanks in london on.
...
Posted by paulgrow (from Allen Park, MI) on January 14, 2008 at 2:09 PM:
What do you mean by slow growing.
We have some that are 4-5 years old.
Last year was the first year that they really took off.
Are you fertilizing them?
Paul
...
Posted by fear (from london
(Canada)) on January 22, 2008 at 11:21 AM:
thanks...mine is yr. 4 this spring so maybe i;ve been impatient. i will fertilize with 13 13 13 this time instead of 20 20 20. i have a flag stone path all around this plant facing east .
...
Subject: Is there help for my hydrangeas?
Posted by kru (from Mount Pleasant, SC) on January 14, 2008 at 10:41 AM:
Great article! And perfect timing for me... I planted two of the repeat blooming hydrangeas last spring. We've had some cold weather here lately (zone 8b) and naturally they went bare and look "twiggy". So my boyfriend went out and pruned them... completely! They are now about 6 inches tall. Will they recover from such a severe pruning or are they doomed? Thanks.
...
Posted by fboiii2004 (from Tyler, TX) on January 14, 2008 at 10:51 PM:
re bloomers might bloom this year. hydragia bloom on old growth, so most of this years blooms went with the trim.
Barry
...
Subject: thanks again
Posted by grampapa (from Wheatfield, NY) on January 10, 2008 at 9:52 PM:
Paul, another wonderful article that I will be referring back to. I really want to get some hydrangeas, probably an oakleaf and a lacecap, so it will be nice to know where I can put my fingers on some good advice. I'll be looking forward to the next one as well.
~ jan
...
Posted by mommis56 (from Alden, MN) on January 14, 2008 at 1:23 PM:
I too love hydrangeas, but my question has to do with when to pick them for bouquets. I find they droop when I bring them in. Is there a trick to this?
...
Posted by paulgrow (from Allen Park, MI) on January 14, 2008 at 2:06 PM:
Never had that problem. I'll ask the obvious, you dot put them in water?
I have some dried blooms I brought in last fall that still look good.
Paul
...
Subject: Is this a Hydrangea tree?
Posted by jeffrushka (from Okolona, MS) on January 10, 2008 at 5:30 PM:
I took this picture last week in Rabat, Morocco. Is this a Hydrangea tree? I have never seen anything like it.
Thanks!
...
Posted by paulgrow (from Allen Park, MI) on January 10, 2008 at 6:11 PM:
The flowers look like hydrangeas the stalks look like sunflowers
Paul
...
Posted by drsaul (from Hereford, TX) on January 10, 2008 at 9:52 PM:
The leaves look like a Paulownia. Neat looking plant!
...
Posted by gone_tropical (from Orlando, FL) on January 17, 2008 at 7:32 AM:
this is a Dombeya wallichii, or tropical hydrengea. The flowers smell like sugar cookies
:-)
...
Subject: hydrangea seeds
Posted by wind (from Mount Laurel, NJ) on January 10, 2008 at 2:15 PM:
Hi, enjoyed your write up. some food for thought on future writings...
I'm in a seed exchange here on DG now and several of us were wondering about hydrangea seeds.
We notice that although there are seeds, you never find baby hydrangea plants popping up around the parent plant. Is this an indication that the seeds could and should not be Winter Sowed?
I was able to harvest very small seeds from my hydrangea macrophylla ‘blue billow’, mountain hydrangea and we are wondering a few things
1) just what do the seeds really look like? they are hard to identify
2) if the plant won't come true from seed...what would you get? a similar but not exact lacecap? no germination?
Happy Gardening!
Diana
...
Posted by paulgrow (from Allen Park, MI) on January 10, 2008 at 3:24 PM:
I'm prettey sure that almost hydrangeas are hybrids, so they wouldn't be true.
I would try stem or leaf cuttings to propagate them
Paul
...
Posted by Islandshari (from Kwajalein
(Marshall Islands)) on January 10, 2008 at 4:38 PM:
Paul, very good information, well presented. I am trying to grow mine in containers, alas I have no choice. Any tips in that direction would be most appreciated.
Yokwe,
Shari
...
Posted by paulgrow (from Allen Park, MI) on January 10, 2008 at 5:05 PM:
Shari
What kind of fertilizer are you using?
Do you have access to the same products that we have here in the states?
Paul
...
Posted by Islandshari (from Kwajalein
(Marshall Islands)) on January 10, 2008 at 5:31 PM:
Paul, very few... I use a time release fert every three or so months, and about every two weeks I give them a bit of the mix with water type - Schultz, Peters, MG...whatever the store had last time I was in...not much to choose from. I've found that a lot of the fancier foods aren't really worth the shipping costs.
...
Posted by paulgrow (from Allen Park, MI) on January 10, 2008 at 6:09 PM:
If you could get some Mir Acid it should work great.
Pail
...
Posted by katie59 (from Woodinville, WA) on January 11, 2008 at 1:15 AM:
Nice article - I have a couple of Nikko Blue hydrangeas on the northeast side of the house. They seem to love it - I'm getting lots of rooted branches, as well.
I'm looking forward to your article on pruning. I believe that these are mature plants (from long before I moved in) and I'm thinking that I'll need to do a hard pruning to clean them up, knowing that I'll miss a year of blossoms. Then I can prune leaving some deadwood in subsequent years. Would love to have you address optimum shape and size of the plants in your article.
Also would love an article on some of your favorites and any new introductions you've heard about. My property is perfect for them (acid soil and part sun/part shade on any given day in most locations) and I'd love to introduce some new specimens.
Thanks!!
...
Subject: Awaiting next installment
Posted by LouC (from Desoto, TX) on January 10, 2008 at 12:26 PM:
I am pushing the envelope in my area as we have very heavy clay and high alkaline soil. I have moved my hydrangeas this past fall for the 3rd time. If they are not successful this time I have no choice but to give up entirely. Have tried to do as you outline but sometimes, you just can't fight Mother Nature. Thank you for another well written article with timely information.
Christi
...
Posted by fboiii2004 (from Tyler, TX) on January 14, 2008 at 11:08 PM:
Christi
You might try raised beds. Like azaleas in the Metroplex, you must create an artificial growing
medium. a mixture of cottom bur, ground pine bark and native soil works well. Fertilome
azalea food will help increase the ph. if not in pm shade you will need to water daily.
Barry
...
Posted by paulgrow (from Allen Park, MI) on January 15, 2008 at 7:00 AM:
Actually of your soil is alkaline you need to LOWER the pH.
