Plan - Prep - Plant Your Way To Beautiful Gardens And Landscapes
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The Hydrangea is such a wonderful deciduous
shrub to use in many different styles of landscapes.
This plant specimen creates a mass of color during the
late spring, summer, and early fall months. The colors
range from a soft white to mellow pinks and purples. |
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The main ingredient to successfully growing this plant family is having the right soil conditions.
The soil should be slightly acid and very well drained. Some people plant a specific type of Hydrangea and are looking for a particular color.
If their soil is too acid base, the shrub may turn a different tone they had planned. It is a good idea to know your soil conditions when planting this type of shrub.
The other ingredient that is important is giving the plant ample room to spread out. When I use this family in designing, an option is to create them as accent plants. After the growing season they will die out, and a good idea is to plant a few evergreens to avoid a dead space.
There are several varieties available today. The Oakleaf is a brilliant specimen that will grow well in zones five through nine. If you have a large area around your driveway or in need to border a garden, the Oakleaf would be perfect. It does best if you space each shrub at least six to eight feet apart.
In warmer climates the Oakleaf Hydrangea should be planted in partial shade but in cooler climates and up in the mountains, it can be put in full sun. A great idea is to create a back drop of evergreen trees such as Arborvitaes, Leyland Cypress or Hemlocks.
The Oakleaf will grow anywhere from three and a half to ten feet tall and the width will run about eight to ten feet. Below are two pictures of a mass of Hydrangeas. One is a landscape open garden and the other is using this specimen along a pathway.


The Snowball reaches three to six feet tall and two and a half to three feet wide. The Snowball is one that I recommend to my clients for a more relaxed or informal look. You can mass plant this shrub or intertwine it throughout a landscape area.
It can take sun to part shade conditions. The Snowball is an older shrub and has been a great accent plant for years in many gardens. The Snowball also looks wonderful against a rustic fence or around some natural rocks.
The Annabelle is a great shrub around walls and other masonry features. It does great in zones three through nine. The Annabelle will mature to three to five feet tall and the also three to five feet tall width. The clusters are large and emerge in the summer throughout the early fall season.
This is a great Hydrangea for a small area or narrow pathway. It likes part shade conditions and may burn out if given to much summer sun. The Annabelle is a little different when pruning as it should be done in the early spring or late winter months.
Examples of landscape designs will give you a wide variety of detailed color drawings of many different landscape areas and gardens. Browse through the designs to get some ideas of where to plant the different Hydrangeas.
This is a larger shrub as it will grow anywhere from nine to twenty feet high and eight to ten feet wide.
The flowers reveal a mass of white clusters in the peak of the summer months. This shrub can be pruned back a couple of times a year to prevent its mature height.
The Peegee is wonderful to create as an accent plant. it can be planted staggered or in a row in a larger garden or around an open area.
A trellis near by with a climbing plant gives your garden a new dimension. Plant smaller evergreen shrubs such as Mop Cypress, Globe Arborvitaes, or Indian Hawthorns in front of the Peegees.
The first photo is of a flower still in full bloom in the beginning of November in the south. The second picture is of the same bush, and one of the flowers are changing into its fall colors. Notice all the different soft shades and colors.
Many of these flowers are as beautiful in autumn as they are in their peak time of spring and summer.


The French is best known in the warmer climates as it loves the heat of the summer months. The growing zones are a little more narrow as the French does well in six through nine.
This is a classic example of soil conditions as the French will definitely change colors in different soil conditions. If your soil has more acid, its appearance is a rich blue color.
The less acid soil will reveal a pink color. This shrub does well in part shade and will grow three to six feet tall and three to six or seven feet wide. You can prune the French after it blooms.

The last variety is one of my favorites to design with.
The Climbing Hydrangea is brilliant along
a trellis or fence.
This vine has tiny white flowers
that blossom in the mid summer months. It can
grow fifty to sixty feet, so I recommend to place
it in an area you will have access to trim back.
Natural settings such as rocks, decorative stone
or brick walls can work really well.
The climber
will grow in zones four through seven. I love
putting an arch trellis behind a bench and training
this climber to show off. It is a slow grower, but if
patient this is a great show case for any garden.
The Hydrangea family can be used in so many zones as well as a variety of garden projects.
Their massive cluster of flowers create a truly spectacular view for you and your family
to enjoy.


Learn More About Growing And Taking Care Of Hydrangeas

From Pamela
Georgia, USA
I believe my Loropetalum
is 100% better.
It truly looks
better than it did
when we 1st planted it. Thank you
for providing me
with EXCELLENT tips
as I was about
to dig it up. :)


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