Hydrangeas are spectacular this year! Was it all the rain? I don’t know. I also don’t know why some of mine are blooming like crazy, and some have not a bloom. This is why I’m not a master gardener. But I’m certainly enjoying these remarkable blooms.
Hydrangeas deliver a huge showy bloom lasting most of the summer. The flower changes color and dries as it ages. And as an added and important bonus, hydrangeas require very little maintenance.
This is a peegee hydrangea tree . It stands about 9 feet tall, and is currently covered with big white blooms. I don’t prune it or cut it back. Occasionally in fall I cut off the dried up blooms, if I’m feeling terribly motivated. Otherwise, there is no maintenance. I haven’t ever fertilized it.
These are limelight hydrangeag bushes in the front of my house. They are really big. Some (like my landscape architect brother) might say they are TOO big. Probably they are. But I can’t take them out; they make me happy. We cut these back one spring, and they came back with a vengeance, even bigger. Besides that, we have done no maintenance.
The endless summer hydrangeas are doing well too, but I don’t know why one blooms and the one next to it has no blooms. (I suspect this is operator error, meaning that I don’t really know what I’m doing here.)
Hydrangea blooms make great cut flowers, and are equally beautiful as they age and dry.
Looking for a maintenance-free showy addition to your landscaping? Hydrangeas might be the answer. Just be prepared for them to steal the show from the rest of your plantings!
For more about landscape ideas, please see HOSTAS: the lazy gal’s gardening secret and Patio Remodel: Fireplace, Seating, and a Louvered Roof,
