an ode to the hydrangea.

Published on by Quandie

Good morning from the garden!

It feels a little like I go on and on about hydrangeas, well, mainly because I do.  But my paniculata hydrangeas are looking so good right now that it seems wrong to not have at least one Sunday morning post about them this year.

I have to say that these hydrangeas are probably the number one plant in my garden that gives the most impact for the least amount of effort.

The only maintenance they really require is a good pruning in the late winter/early spring.  I usually take care of it on the first nice day in April.  It’s also one of the only garden tasks I can do in April because our ground is usually still too cold/wet to do any other clean up yet.  In fact, we often still have snow pack in the shadier spots!

But I’m always itching to get out there and do something in the garden on that first nice spring day!

Panicle hydrangeas, or Hydrangea paniculata, bloom on new wood, and therefore it’s beneficial to whack them back quite a bit in the spring.  The experts say to take off about 1/3 of each stem, but I often go as far as 1/2 (and once I even cut back further, with no ill effect).

Each limb that you cut back will respond by branching out with two or three more.  And each of those will end up with a flower.  So, you get the idea.  Twice as many flowers!

I have a few different varieties of panicle hydrangea.  There is a Little Lime next to the potting shed.

I planted this at least 10 years ago or so, so it has reached its full mature height and it’s about 5′ tall.

Right now the flowers on the Little Lime are quite a bit more green than those on the Limelight, and they are also starting to get that tinge of pink that they take on as the temperatures cool off.

I have a Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea planted next to the carriage house.  And by the way, that is a Roguchi clematis on the arbor next to it and I just planted that in May 2022.  It’s not only vigorous, but also blooms all summer.

The flowers on the Vanilla Strawberry start out white, but gradually turn pink.  Right now they are just starting to get a tinge of pink.

Later in the fall the colors on these two will look like this …

Both of them end up with a bit more color than the Limelights.

I have three Limelights in the garden.  One is next to our front door.

I whack that thing back hard every spring, and it just re-grows nearly up to the porch roof and is covered in giant blooms.

You may remember that earlier this summer I pruned out the lower branches and then planted some shade loving perennials under it, and that is working out quite well.

I also have two Limelights planted next to our deck in the back.  I planted them there to make the deck feel cozier and more private.

Mr. Q and I eat dinner out here quite often, and it’s also our favorite spot for our morning coffee.

I planted a couple of new panicle hydrangeas last year, a Fire Light Tidbit and Little Quick Fire.  Both have been really slow to establish and actually seem smaller now than when I planted them.  I had to baby them along all of last summer, and once again this summer.  Any bit of heat, or lack of water causes them to wilt like mad.  I’m keeping an eye on them and hoping they do better next year.

I also have one other Little Quick Fire that is now out next to the carriage house.

This one has also been very slow to establish, but I have to cut it some slack because I moved it earlier this summer.  I used to have it where the fairy garden wheelbarrow is sitting now.  The thing is, I don’t really like the color this becomes later in the season.  It turns a sort of mauve-ish shade, and have I ever mentioned that mauve is the one color that I really do not like.

Here’s a picture that I borrowed from the Proven Winners website to show you the color.

It’s just not my cup of tea.  And yet, I planted two of them in my garden before I realized that I didn’t like the color.  I actually offered them to my friend Sue at one point, and when she saw the color, she declined the offer.

So, there you go, not all Hydrangea paniculata are winners in my book.

But I sure do love the rest of them!

How about you?  Do you have a favorite hydrangea?  Leave a comment and let me know.

 

28 thoughts on “an ode to the hydrangea.”

    1. Thanks Diane, it is comfy and we spend a lot of time out there in the summer. Right now it’s only 53° outside though, so it’s starting to feel like summer is winding down already!

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  3. Your hydrangeas are gorgeous and I love reading about them and seeing your pictures! Florida has some supposedly adaptable for our state but they didn’t do well for me so I gave up. I’ll continue reading about your beautiful garden!

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    1. I hear you on that Faye, I gave up on the macrophylla hydrangeas because they didn’t do well for me in our climate. We all have our pros and cons, right?

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    1. Sadly, that only works on macrophylla hydrangeas and here in Minnesota it’s difficult to get macrophylla’s to bloom reliably. They bloom on old wood, and ours usually die down to the ground in winter if left unprotected. I’ve tried growing them and I got plenty of green growth each year, but only a handful of flowers. So ultimately I pulled them out and went with paniculatas instead.

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      1. Ah, I knew that with your encyclopedic knowledge of gardening you would know that, and now I understand why you aren’t employing it. Your garden is an absolute haven. Everything you touch blossoms with beauty!!

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  5. Your hydrangeas are gorgeous. I’m partial to Limelight. I lso forward to your posts.
    I also love your deck furniture. Could you please tell me the brand/name of them? I look so forward to your posts.

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    1. We’ve had that deck furniture since 2009. Earlier this summer I mentioned that the straps were breaking and I had to replace a few of them. Anyway, since it’s 13 years old I don’t know if you could find the same thing, but the brand is Hampton Bay and maybe they still have something similar. It certainly has held up well, so I’d definitely recommend it.

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      1. I’m sorry to hear they need repairs, but with 13 years of use, I guess you can’t complain. Thanks so much for answering my question.

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  6. I have about 20 of the Endless Summer variety. They’re beautiful shades of blue and if they’re not cut for bouquets, they turn multi color to lime green and a pink and burgundy color on the plant. 16 in one spot and it makes for an awesome privacy fence for our pool. Right now they’re almost 5 feet tall!
    They are virtually zero maintenance. I just love them.

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    1. Where are you located Sue? I’m guessing a slightly warmer zone than my 4b? Ironically, the Endless Summer was developed here in MN and supposedly for our zone. All of my gardening friends and I went out and purchased them with high hopes for blue hydrangeas. And now pretty much all of my gardening friends and I have pulled them back out of our gardens after years of disappointing results.

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      1. I’m in Western Massachusetts, about 10 minutes from the Vermont and New Hampshire borders. But all my hydrangeas are in full sun all day and I think that makes a difference. I have blooms from mid to late June till a killing frost usually in October. I should also mention that the ones that do the best are in a raised stone wall. One year we had a winter storm in October and the hydrangeas were covered in snow. It was beautiful! And I love all your work by the way ❤️

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      2. Looks like you are slightly warmer, a zone 5a or 5b, and I think that’s probably enough to give you those gorgeous Endless Summer blooms! And thank you for the compliment 🙂

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  7. I love hydrangeas and the combo of the little limelight and vanilla strawberry is just so gorgeous! I love cutting mine and then letting them dry in the vase. You just can’t beat that pinkish color!

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  9. Hydrangeas are my very favorite flowers! Unfortunately our Oklahoma heat requires a lot of effort on my part to keep them alive and I haven’t been very successful. 😦 But I do keep trying!! I don’t have a favorite, I pretty much love them all!! Yours are beautiful!!

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  11. I have a Vanilla Strawberry tree hydrangea. Love her for her pink/white blooms. I also have 2 Limelight tree hydrangeas which flower well and are huge. I like Bobo but it’s a bit finicky for placement. Yours are all gorgeous.

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