Mania HYDRANGEA

It’s rare for me to meet someone who doesn’t. And why wouldn’t you? They are one of the most prolific blooming shrubs in our area. They are tough and tolerant to many different soil and light conditions. They range in size from 3 feet to 15 feet tall – and everything in between. They are great cut and dried flowers. Some varieties even attract pollinators and butterflies!

The only “con” I can think of regarding hydrangeas is that I don’t have room in my garden to plant all of them.

There are literally hundreds of varieties available, and it is hard to keep up with the new introductions that seem to appear in the Garden Center overnight. Here are some of my favorite, tried and true varieties as well as a few brand new ones that are worth a look for your gardens. There are tons of hydrangeas available – at least one for every situation you may have – so stop by the Garden Center and check them out. They are in all of their glory right now!

n LITTLE LIME PUNCH: I can’t even begin to describe how beautiful the flower show is on this one. It starts out ivory, then goes to pink, then ultimately to that deep pink, like the Hawaiian Punch you drank as a kid. It’s a nice sized plant at 5 feet by 5 feet, so it has a multitude of uses – screening the utility boxes, dotted in the perennial border or just one somewhere to enjoy. Full sun keeps it looking great.

n PINKY POLLEN RING: Probably my favorite in my own garden. It’s a smooth hydrangea that has light pink lacecap flowers the pollinators love. The bumblebees “vacuum” the pollen off of each flower, and it’s so fun to watch. It’s shade or sun tolerant (the flowers are a bit lighter pink on the ones I have in the shade) and it’s really just a nice shrub. Mine are about 3 feet tall and wide, and I treat them the same as the Incrediball above – trim them down in spring to about 18 inches tall, and that’s it!

n TUFF STUFF: I have a love/ hate relationship with the colored hydrangeas. If you tallied up all of the plants I have killed in the 30-plus years I’ve been gardening, the highest numbers in the loss column would be hydrangea macrophylla cultivars (the fancy colored ones that grow effortlessly in Michigan and by Martha Stewart types). But, along comes the mountain hydrangea (H. serrata). I managed to keep Tuff Stuff alive and blooming for several years … until the neighbor’s dog got ahold of it. At least it wasn’t my fault it died! These mountain types are pretty resilient, though I would still site them in a morning sun/afternoon shade situation and be careful to trim only the dead after it fully leafs out each spring. You can manipulate the soil pH to get them pink or blue also.

n PUFFER FISH: This guy is a brand new introduction (from Proven Winners) that has the coolest flowers. Also coming in at 5 feet by 5 feet, it’s a nice solo artist or in a mass planted border. The flowers are open and “puffy” and start out white, then turn to greenish. They also keep getting puffier as they mature. It has so many flowers, you can hardly see the leaves. It’s worth a look if you are establishing a shrub border and want some outstanding floral production.

n GATSBY GAL: The Gatsby Gal is a newer oakleaf hydrangea that has lots of large blooms on a fairly compact plant. It’s larger – 6 feet by 6 feet – but it has a beautiful habit and is excellent for shadier gardens. The large leaves have a deep burgundy fall color. This is good as a specimen or in a hedge as a background for other smaller plants.

n TREE FORM HYDRANGEAS: The cool new thing in the plant world is to put a shrub on a stick and call it a tree! This is cool for many reasons. You can have a colorful “tree” in a small location. They are easy to trim because you can reach the whole plant easily. They require no special care different from that of their shrub forms. They bloom all summer and into fall and they even have neat winter architecture. Many of the popular hydrangeas such as Limelight, Pink Diamond, Quick Fire, Pinky Winky and Vanilla Strawberry are grafted into tree form. They are only differentiated by their flower style and colors. Their sizes stay fairly uniform in size (approximately 6 to 8 inches wide and 10 inches tall with stem). You can certainly trim them in spring to keep them a certain size because they are essentially a shrub. They make a nice centerpiece in a small courtyard or even in a perennial garden. They’re great for somewhere you may need height but can’t put a regular tree!