Where is the best place to plant blue hydrangeas?
Knowing that Hydrangeas prefer morning sun and don't do well in long hours of direct afternoon sun will help you choose the best location to plant a Hydrangea shrub. Hydrangeas need enough water to keep their soil moist but it must be well-draining so their roots are not sitting in water.
Many people plant hydrangeas in beds next to their homes or fences. This is because hydrangeas love the warm morning sun, but they dislike the heat of the afternoon. The best place to plant hydrangeas is in a sheltered location with sunny mornings and shady afternoons.
Where to grow hydrangeas. Hydrangeas grow best in well-drained soil, in a protected, dappled shady spot. They prefer sun in the morning with some shade in the afternoon. South-facing positions are best avoided, and protect young growth from spring frosts.
Growing Zones and Ideal Conditions
The blue hydrangea blooms from mid-to-late summer. The hydrangea can be grown in cooler zones if its buds are protected from late winter/early spring frosts. Hydrangeas do especially well in coastal towns. They thrive in the sandy, acidic soils that coastal towns have.
The hydrangea is a perennial flower that blooms from mid-summer to late fall. They come back year after year and require regular pruning and fertilization for best results. Hydrangeas can thrive in both full sun or partial shade. Many plants have a life cycle of one year and are categorized as an annual plant.
Some gardeners report success in turning their hydrangeas blue by applying coffee grounds to the soil. The coffee grounds make the soil more acidic, allowing the hydrangea to more easily absorb aluminum. In addition, fruit peels, lawn clippings, peat moss and pine needles, are thought to have a similar effect.
East Side. The east side of the house is the best planting location, as it gets the morning and afternoon sun. This is the best side of the house for your hydrangeas, traditionally.
Most hydrangeas prefer only morning sun. Yet one type of hydrangea can soak up the sun all day: the panicle hydrangea. While they can stand the sun, these do just fine in partial shade, too. Plus, panicle hydrangeas are the hardiest hydrangeas.
- Incrediball® H. ...
- Fire Light ® Panicle hydrangea. ...
- Bobo® H. ...
- Pinky Winky® H. ...
- Invincibelle® Spirit II H. ...
- Little Quick Fire® H. ...
- Tuff Stuff™ H. ...
- LET'S DANCE Big Band® Reblooming hydrangea.
What month is best to plant hydrangeas? The months of both spring and fall are best for planting hydrangeas, so long as the weather is mild. In spring, this should be after frost season, and in fall, before it begins again. If you need to plant in other months, avoid those that are very hot or very cold.
Is Miracle Grow good for hydrangeas?
To grow hydrangeas in planting beds, focus on improving the native soil. One simple way to do that is to combine equal parts existing soil and Miracle-Gro® Garden Soil for Trees and Shrubs. In warmer regions (zones 7 and warmer), where winter tends to be mild, you can also grow hydrangeas in containers.
Planting Hydrangeas In The Ground
We recently planted three Let's Dance Rhythmic Blue Bloomsturck hydrangeas in our front yard. We planted them in our front garden bed near our walk. These reblooming bigleaf shrubs grow 2-3 feet high and spread out to cover a 3-foot area.
Let's Dance Rhythmic Blue
This is a great option for gardeners looking for a low maintenance hydrangea. This hydrangea is very easy to grow and requires no pruning! 'Rhythmic Blue' has deep blue flowers that will bloom from mid summer to early fall.
So, to make sure your hydrangea stays really blue add Vitax Hydrangea Colourant, a powder containing aluminium that you can mix with the compost.
The easiest way to acidify your soil and turn those babies blue is with aluminum sulfate, which can be found at almost any garden center. Mix ¼ oz aluminum sulfate with a gallon of water and soak the soil surrounding your hydrangeas in the spring, as soon as the plant begins to grow.
Wrap with winter protection.
During the winter, make a DIY A-frame wire cage out of burlap and chicken wire to protect your hydrangea plant. This cage will protect it from winter winds, heavy snowfall, and cold temperatures.
There is one more trick up the apple cider vinegar sleeve: You can actually change the color of hydrangea flowers from pink to blue. Hydrangea flowers will be pink in alkaline soil, but change to blue in acidic soil. So, mix up some apple cider vinegar and water, and give all the acid-loving plants a treat.
The hydrangea should be watered thoroughly at least 3 times a week. Always water the plant all the way around the container, not just in one place. Water should come out the bottom of the pot. Never let it sit in water which will cause the roots to rot away.
However, many times it's easy to turn those pink imposters back to blue, should one so desire. Simply squeezing a few lemons or limes over the plant somewhat raises the acidity level of the soil, consequently turning the blooms from pink to blue.
- 17 Tips on How to Grow Hydrangeas in Your Yard:
- Give them yummy soil.
- Check the pH levels of the soil.
- Amend the soil.
- Plant at the appropriate depth/width.
- They love morning sun.
- Don't crowd them.
- Fertilizer isn't necessary.
How far away from the house should I plant hydrangeas?
A good rule of thumb is to calculate one and a half times the estimated maximum width of your Hydrangea and plant it at least that far from your house. And as always, you should take sun exposure into account.
*We don't recommend oakleaf hydrangeas because they don't often look their best when grown in a container. They flourish when planted in the ground. But if you enjoy the look, go for it!
- They are hardy. Panicle hydrangea are considered the most cold hardy of the species. ...
- Pruning doesn't affect bloom. Unlike bigleaf hydrangeas (H. ...
- Flower type and size vary. ...
- Watch the pH—but don't worry about deer. ...
- They have some winter interest.
Deadheading your hydrangeas isn't a care step you want to skip. "Deadheading allows the energy produced by the plant to go into the leaves, stems, and roots (rather than forming seeds) for future growth," says Melinda Myers, a professional gardener.
The leaves and flower heads may burn, turning brown. If you notice this, that means your hydrangea is getting too much sun.
Panicle hydrangeas from Proven Winners are the most reliably blooming, low maintenance, hardy hydrangeas you can grow. Since they bloom on new growth each summer, there is no chance for the flower buds to be damaged by winter cold because they simply haven't been formed yet.
Panicle hydrangeas are a fantastic choice for adding late-season interest to your garden. As other plants start to fade, panicle hydrangeas burst into bloom, stealing the spotlight with their showy panicles of flowers. Their long-lasting flowers persist well into the fall, extending the beauty of your garden.
Most Abundant Flowers: Limelight
This classic panicle hydrangea blooms from late summer to early fall. It produces a profusion of huge, conical, white flowers tinged with light green that slowly age to reddish pink.
Water your hydrangeas in the morning before the heat of the sun is strong enough to quickly evaporate soil moisture. Try to avoid watering at night, which can encourage mold and mildew as the moisture sits through the cool night. Water your hydrangeas through the growing season as well as in late fall.
Hydrangeas are extremely popular and the cool season of fall is the best time to plant them! Here are 5 easy-to-grow, easy-to-love hydrangeas that you can plant with confidence. Anyone can grow the native Hydrangea arborescens, or smooth hydrangea, even in a chilly Zone 3 garden.
How late in the fall can you plant hydrangeas?
Aim for late spring, well after any danger of frost has passed, or early fall, when night temperatures usher in cooler air. If you garden in a region where the ground freezes, get plants into the ground at least six weeks prior to fall's first killing frost.
If you're growing hydrangeas, use coffee grounds to affect their color. Coffee grounds add extra acidity to the soil around hydrangeas. On a chemical level, this increased acidity makes it easier for the plant to absorb naturally occurring aluminum in the dirt. The effect is pretty blue clusters of flowers.
Adding organic materials, such as our Coco-Fiber Potting Medium and compost will improve most every soil type. Organic materials bind sandy soil particles so they retain moisture and nutrients better. They also break apart clay and silt particles, so that water can infiltrate and roots can spread.
Homemade compost is a great source of slow release nutrients for hydrangeas. Either top dress the soil beneath your plants with your compost and water well or brew up a batch of compost tea and give your plants a deep drink of it. You can repeat your application of compost tea in 2 to 3 weeks.
Space hydrangeas anywhere from 3 to 10 feet apart, depending on the type. Always space plants based on their expected size at maturity! Gently remove the hydrangea from its container and inspect the root ball, snipping off any dead or rotting parts and teasing free the roots if the plant is especially root bound.
Hydrangeas Are Toxic To Dogs
"The toxic component of the hydrangea plant is a cyanogenic glycoside." Chewing plants with this compound causes cyanide to be released. The leaves, buds, flowers, and bark all contain the toxin, so if your dog munches any part of your hydrangeas, he could get sick.
But many gardeners wonder, “Do deer eat hydrangeas?” Unfortunately, deer tend to love these billowy plants as much as we do. Although not browsed as heavily as hostas, hydrangeas do frequently get “pruned” by deer and usually just as they are about to bloom.
"Blue Enchantress" grows three to four feet tall and has hardier flower buds. This one seems to bloom reliably year after year. It also has purple stems, green leaves with beautiful blue flowers. And blue hydrangeas are a coastal plant in Japan and Korea, which is why they grow so well in areas like Cape Cod and Maine.
Nikko Blue hydrangea is one of the most popular blue hydrangea varieties around. This variety has beautifully rounded heads of overlapping flowers, creating a stunning blue mophead. Hydrangea macrophylla 'Nikko Blue' tends to grow to a mature size of 4-6 feet tall by 4-6 feet wide in a rounded shape.
Below are some helpful flower care tips: When buying Hydrangeas, always ask how old they are. You really want to make sure you are buying the freshest Hydrangeas available (1-3 days old) as they only tend to last 5-9 days depending on how you care for them.
What do blue hydrangeas symbolize?
Blue hydrangeas have a meaning of forgiveness, rejection and regret. So, while they may be super pretty, they don't have the happiest meaning. We've all been in an argument with someone and said something we've immediately regretted, and if you're looking to apologise, then blue hydrangeas are a great starting point.
Adjust the Soil pH
Most garden soils tend to be neutral so you'll need to amp up the acidity to go blue. You can do that in a variety of ways. Organic acidifiers include sulfur and sulfate. There are also easy-to-use soil additives made specifically for hydrangeas.
All hydrangea blooms turn different colors as they age. The most common color for pink and blue hydrangeas to turn is green (especially in the South where climates are hot and humid). After the blooms turn green, they may pick up shades of pink and burgundy.
Multiply the number of bold, bright blooms on your woody hydrangea shrubs by making sure your plants have the right amount of sunlight and soil, a fertilizer designed to increase bloom quantity, and a pruning and deadheading routine that keeps them flowering all season long.
What Makes Hydrangeas Blue Or Pink? You see, for most French hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla), the flower color indicates the pH of the soil. In strongly acid soil (pH below 6), flowers turn blue. In alkaline soil (pH above 7), flowers turn pink or even red.
Water at a rate of 1 inch per week throughout the growing season. Deeply water 3 times a week to encourage root growth. Bigleaf and smooth hydrangeas require more water, but all varieties benefit from consistent moisture. Use a soaker hose to water deeply and keep moisture off the flowers and leaves.
For deep blue blooms, aim for a soil pH of 4.5. For a more muted blue, you want your soil pH to be 5. Finally, if you want violet-blue hydrangea blossoms, your soil pH should be 5.5. Perform a simple, DIY soil test if you want to discover your soil's exact pH levels.
Boost Blue Hydrangeas With Aluminum
Soil with a lower pH—and a higher acid content—provides bluer blooms; if your soil test shows a pH above five, add aluminum sulfate or another acid to lower the pH and create a brighter, bolder blue. "The acidity of aluminum is what influences the blue color of flowers," Myers says.
Well, for a quick, cheap and easy fix, you just need apple cider vinegar! Mix one cup of apple cider vinegar with 10 litres of water (an average watering can's worth) and direct the solution at the base of the hydrangea, avoiding the leaves.
You can use vinegar to lower the pH of your soil, but be aware that in order to achieve blue blooms, you will need both an acidic environment and aluminum ions. The acidic environment will also need to be a sustained over a period of time, which could be hard if rainwater is washing the vinegar away.
Should you deadhead hydrangeas?
Some hydrangeas can topple over if they have heavy blooms; deadheading them will encourage the growth of stronger stems. In addition to bolstering future blooms and strengthening stems, deadheading your hydrangeas has aesthetic benefits, too.
The theory is, applying diluted vinegar to the soil will lower the pH enough to change the color of your hydrangea blooms. This strategy will make the soil more acidic, but not for long!
Best Fertilizer For Hydrangeas
Organic, slow-release fertilizers for roses (such as a 15-10-10, or 10-5-5 formula) work well on hydrangeas, giving the plants the nutrients they need to increase the size and quantity of their blooms.
Use a fertilizer low in phosphorous (the middle number in the content analysis) such as 12‐4‐8 to encourage production of blue flowers. For other types of hydrangeas, use a general purpose fertilizer, at recommended rates on the package. Incorporate dry fertilizer into top 2” – 3” of soil and water thoroughly.
