How Do You Grow Hydrangeas?

I have had the best luck with hydrangeas on the North side of the house. They typically like the more shaded, cooler areas and the North side seems to meet that criteria. Generally the first year or two they do not grow quite as big; however, a couple of mine have been in the ground for 3 years now and are doing great. Feed them miracle grow hydrangea fertilizer and keep the soil moist but not too wet. Good luck. FYI: To change the color of the blossoms, put a rusted nail by the plant. It changes the acidity of the soil.

Most hydrangeas enjoy morning sunlight with peppery afternoon shade.
Keep your hydrangeas growing happily with a nice layer of mulch around the base of the plant.
Only prune your hydrangea to remove dead wood or to shape the plant after it has bloomed.
Aluminum sulfate may be added to the soil around your hydrangea plants to turn pink hydrangeas blue.
Lime may be added to the soil around your hydrangeas to turn blue hydrangea blooms pink in color.
Adding a balanced fertilizer late in the Winter or early in the Spring is all that is usually needed to properly feed hydrangeas.
Keep hydrangea plants well watered during dry spells.

You do have to prune them after they've bloomed.
B.

My grandmother grew roses and was named after the azalea, and I now have a rosebush and an azalea in my yard i her honor - I think growing something living in honor of a loved one is a beautiful way to honor their memory.

I've never grown hydrangeas, but there's a lot of onfo on them here:
http://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/

Best of luck to you.

PLan in the shade when it is cool, they hate the heat. I almost planted my new plants too late this last year. After they bloo make sure you dead head all the old blloms soon after they turn brown other wise you will have them into the next growing season. Depending on where you are the new growth could com as early as Christmas, why I have blue and brown blooms this early in the growing season. Also use a good feed on them, I do this once a month or ever few months. Also make sure there is plenty of rrom for growth mine take up one whole end of the front of the house but are beautiful when in bloom. Green luck to you and your plants.

go on line and read about the plant. There are several different varieties -- and they all like specific soil types. Supposedly the pH of the soil makes the flowers different colors -- pink or purple. If I remember correctly, sunshine too ... I have some "trees" in my front yard that get "beaten up by the sun" but are doing o.k.; then in the backyard, a different variety under some shade trees that probably should be moved.

Of course, you can go to the nursery too and ask them (my husband calls me "Black Thumb M." but somehow if the plants survive their first year with me, then they will survive anyone!

They are beautiful plants! You should see them in Japan!

M.

Hi honey - I am so sorry to hear of your loss. I lost my mom 2 1/2 years ago so I can understand how you are feeling. As to your bush? Fertilize it on a regular basis. Check with your local nurseryman. I go to Russell Houser at Earth Touch here in Huntsville - he is extremely knowledgeable.

T., if you get any good advice-I need it, too. I just got a plant for graduation and I planted it and it looks beautiful, but I want it to last also. I will peek at some of the other responses. Good luck. N.

I'm no expert, believe me, I kill more plants than I keep alive. I have one in my back that seems to do pretty well, we've had it 2 years now & it has lots of blooms. I water it some in the evenings in the summer when it's really hot & trim it back to a nub in the winter after growing season. Other than that can't say I can offer much more, but you might try a good pruning this fall,that should encourage more flowering/new growth. Also, some plants do better if you cut off old blooms after they flower, but not sure if that is the case w/ a hydrangea...

T. I want to say sorry for you lost most of all. I can tell you that my mother and other friends of mine have these plants and I have noticed that most of them did not plant them in direct sunlight. Most of them have them planted around their house under the eve. You can do a google search and there is alot of information on these plants. How to plant even to how to change their colors. Good luck.

I would make sure you are using a fertilizer specifically for hydrangeas. They like acidic soil like azaleas and blueberries. They also like a little bit of shade but still need some sun.
Hope this helps.

My husband is the gardener in our family but I get to admire his work and he has been successful with putting hydragenas in the ground everywhere. We have the green leafed and variegated ones under an oak tree that gets filtered sun light and we have others in full sun that do as well. He does not cut back as aggressively as is recommended by some garden experts so when they get too "leggy" I ask him to trim a bit more. Team work. And hydragenas remind me of my grandmother and my husband's mother that just loved them and of course us. I too was a SAHM and loved it. Our daughter is now beginning law school and another phase of our lives. good luck and enjoy your garden and memories. Jeanie

My grandmother swears that hydrangeas love the north side. I didn't believe her until I planted mine on the south side of our home. They almost died. I moved them last year to the north side and my husband grabbed me two days ago and said, "You want to see something beautiful?" They are bigger than ever and in full bloom and I have done nothing to them.

Hi T.,
Put them in the ground, water two to three
times in the summer days, and put in some
epsom salt around the roots in the spring
and water well. good luck. M. F.

Mine are on the North side of the house, though they don't get enough sun because of a few things blocking the sun. I use a combination fertilizer and pesticide that I also use on roses by Bayer that I just sprinkle around the plant. If I would work the soil around them more I think they would do better but I don't, yet they bloom very well and have kept their color (one a blue with purplish tinge and one a deep pink with a dark lavender tinge). Someone told me they don't like to get too dry either. The area I have them stays pretty moist with less sun. Hope this helps. C.

Fertilize them and make sure they are in a soil that drains well. Putting epsom salt (heavy in magnesium) around the roots will only change the color of the flowers to blue. If you want them red or pink, use chilated iron or old nails. (My husband has been in the nursery business for years.) The color of the flowers is dependant on the composition of the soil they are in.