Hydrangeas

Brightly studded with large, globular, mushroom-headed, or broadly conical flowers, hydrangea plants richly color borders from July to September. Blooms come in white and shades of pink, blue, or red. Long-lived, deciduous Hydrangea shrubs grow 20 inches-8ft high and across. Most widely grown are aptly named mophead and lacecap varieties of Hydrangea macrophylla. Yielding pink, mauve, or red blooms on alkaline soils and blue heads in acid conditions, they thrive in fertile ground. Characteristically, lacecaps have an outer ring of large, sterile flowers enclosing tiny, pink, or blue, fertile ones. They like dappled sunlight or morning sun and afternoon shade suit hydrangeas. Make sure they are sheltered from frosty winds, which will damage embryo blossoms. H. macrophylla varieties are reliable seaside plants for relatively frost-free areas. Hydrangea trees and shrubs need damp soil high in organic matter, so improve poor areas by digging in plenty of well-decayed manure or compost a few months ahead of planting. Also mulch plants with well-rotted organic matter. You can plants these March-November.