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Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Hydrangea



Hydrangeas are showy flowering shrubs, blooming late in summer and often into the fall, with faded flower heads remaining on branches into winter.

They are easy to grow, untroubled by pests and one of the best suppliers of large flowers for fresh bouquets and dried arrangements.

Hydrangeas are fascinating in that, unlike most other plants, the colours of their flowers can change dramatically.  In our neighbourhood, the soil tends to be acidic, so if we add aluminum sulfate to the soil, we'll get vivid blue-coloured flowers on the lovely big-leaf hydrangeas. 

Blue is not the only colour in which a hydrangea can bloom; it is merely the easiest in our area.  For more information on changing your hydrangea's colours, click on this website:  http://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/colorchange.html

They do well in a protected site up against the house, where the shrub will get some winter protection.  This spring, I planted a hydrangea next to my chimney, but it may not bloom until next summer, so I made photos from other yards!


I'm hoping that with some luck and some aluminum sulfate, I'll have summer-sky-blue flowers next summer, too!  If not, I am happy to have their natural white-pink hues;  gorgeous, too!

These photos are mine; the hydrangeas are not.  The top photo is from a neighbour's yard and the bottom one is from my friend's garden.

Reference material is from Lois Hole's Favourite Trees & Shrubs  (1997, Lone Pine Publishing, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada)

2 comments:

Deborah Carr said...

I'm glad I visited! I never knew that you could change the colour. I have a small pink one that's been overshadowed by phlox, so really need to move it this fall. I'm make sure to add AS to the mix! Your shrub is lovely.

Carol Steel said...

Thanks for the visit to my blog. And for the comments. The shrub isn't mine but a neighbour's. I borrowed it for my photo and it is lovely. I get to enjoy it from afar. Carol