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Hydrangeas

Hydrangeas are full sun to partial shade plants that appreciate moist, well-drained soil. Lots of organic matter will help. The nicest hydrangeas can be seen on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. These Hydrangeas are grown iin virtually pure sand. There are many types and varieties of Hydrangeas. The Hydrangea pictured to the left is a Lace Cap Hydrangea. It's beautiful light purple color is determined by the acidity of the soil. Learn how to care for your plant and how you can make your hydrangeas different colors by applying either lime of aluminum sulphate. Lime will keep your Hydrangeas pink while Aluminum Sulfate will keep your Hydrangeas blue. There are many variations of blue and pink tones. It's fun to experiment. Hydrangeas are to summer as lilacs are to spring. Most of the varieties start flowering in June and bloom for a good six weeks. With the shortage of good all-summer plants, Hydrangeas deserve a spot in everyone’s garden.

Oak Leaf Hydrangeas are named for their beautiful oak-shaped leaves. They are a native plant of the United States and, the flowers are small in the middle and around the outside they have larger, ¾ of an inch size flowers with four petals. This type of hydrangea often seen Cape Cod. They prefer morning sun and afternoon shade, but will tolerate full sun or as little as 3-4 hours of sun.

Aging is a long and beautiful process for these flowers. As the months pass, they change from light pink to rose to a pleasing tan, and they remain on the plant well into winter. The leaves stick around a long time, too, turning rich wine colors and hanging on until late November or even early December. Come January, the sculptural branches and peach-colored exfoliating bark provide plenty of winter interest. I like to cut the flowers in late summer and let them dry for beautiful dried arrangements to use throughout the fall and winter months.

This plant is easy to grow. It’s disease and insect free, drought tolerant once established, and heavy blooming even in shade. Oakleaf hydrangeas have a naturally beautiful shape and rarely need pruning. But, if you do choose to prune, you’ll want to wait until immediately after flowering, since buds are set in early fall.

The Hydrangea growing cycle parallels the seasons of the year. In late Spring, dormant flower buds open to yield flowers. Immediately after, dense foliage manufactures large amounts of carbohydrates.Long summer days and tropical humidity at night enable the plant to store huge amounts of sugar. With the autumn equinor, September 21st, shortened periods of daylight and cooler temperatures enable the plant to take a momentary rest before flower bud production starts the first of October. In November, the Hydrangea goes dormant for the winter.

Only French Hydrangeas have the capability of changing flower colors based on the PH of the soil. If your plant is a PeeGee or Annabelle Hydrangea, its flowers will always be white and cannot be changed.

If you have a French Hydrangea and want to turn it blue, here is what to do:

• No later than June 1, run a test of the soil at the dripline of the plant.For accurate results, the soil must be moist. Keep the pH between 4.5 and 5.5 throughout the Summer and early Fall. If the pH is too high, scratch granuels of aluminum sulfate into the soil at the dripline. If the pH needs to be raised, add small amounts of ground limestone as needed.
• Starting in early August, drench the soil with aluminum sulfate with one teaspoon per gallon of water. Make two drenching in August and two in September.

Annabell Hydrangea

Hydrangea Macrophyllum



Oak Leaf Hydrangea