Hydrangeas: The Best Summer Shrub On The Market

Hydrangeas are beautiful shrubs that bring endless beauty to an outdoor space. If you are in search of a long blooming, vibrant-colored, summer flowering shrub to add to your yard this season, a hydrangea is most definitely a top-tier option!

Growing Hydrangeas can be great fun! There are currently around 75 different species. The color of some Hydrangeas flowers can be altered depending on the acidity of the soil and the amount of aluminum in the soil. Each different color of Hydrangea has a different meaning, so you can alternate colors to suit your own symbolic needs!

1. Bigleaf Hydrangeas:

There are 2 main groups of Bigleaf Hydrangeas: hortensias and lacecaps. The hortensias bloom with large snowball-like flower clusters. The lacecaps bloom with flat-top flowers. The fertile non-showy flowers grow in the center and showy sterile flowers grow on the outside. These colors of the blooms are typically blue, pink, or purple, but the colors can be changed.

2. Panicle Hydrangeas:

This species of Hydrangeas is the most reliably blooming, low maintenance, and hardy of Hydrangeas that you can grow. They offer the best cold and heat tolerance. Unfortunately, you are not able to manipulate the colors with soil ph and aluminum like you can with other species. However, they do still offer a range of stunning colors. Each of them starts out white or green and blooms in shades of pink, red, and burgundy.

3. Smooth Hydrangea:

The Smooth Hydrangea is also known as the Wild Hydrangea. This wild thing can endure harsh and cold winters, which makes them great for surviving through the chilly early spring weather! White, blue, pink, or purple blooms will appear in this shrub. It is a good idea to plant in mass or woodland edges to allow as much space as possible for growth. As an added bonus pollinators will be attracted.

4. Oakleaf Hydrangea:

If you are looking to add bold texture to your garden with a unique shrub, then the Oakleaf Hydrangea is the perfect choice for you! When young, this shrub has oakleaf-shaped leaves that are fuzzy. As early fall approaches the leaves will turn red or purple and the flowers will bloom red. It also transports easily!

5. Climbing Hydrangea:

With vines that can climb up 30-80 feet, Climbing Hydrangeas are perfect for creating depth in your garden! They are one of the few species of Hydrangeas that can tolerate large amounts of shade and do not require full sun. You could cover up to 200 square feet with these beautiful decorative shrubs!

There are a million and one reasons to praise hydrangeas, but we will just cover a few major benefits of growing these beautiful summer shrubs in the garden.

1. Native Hydrangea Options

There are a ton of Hydrangeas Native to North America, making them a wonderful eco-conscious option for Maryland landscapes! Selecting native plants for your yard provides a multitude of benefits! Hydrangeas require a lesser need for heavy watering and fertilizer. They also support local wildlife and provide resources to local pollinators!

2. Long Lasting

An investment in Hydrangeas is an investment into the future. Hydrangeas bloom the longest of any shrub, come back every year, and can live for up to 50 years if properly cared for!

3. Hypoallergenic

Hydrangeas are great for people with allergies! They produce allergy-safe pollen and are fragrance-free.

4. Hydrangea Cut Flower Garden

Pruning Hydrangeas can also visually beautify the inside of your home! Hydrangeas are also a wonderful addition to cut flower arrangements. Cut blooms can last for 10 days making them ideal for use in bouquets and in centerpieces for your home. Cut Hydrangeas also dry beautifully and can bring long-lasting elegance and beauty to an indoor space!

5. Coverage

Most Hydrangeas will grow up to 15 feet tall and Climbing Hydrangeas can even grow up to 80 feet tall! Some species can even cover up to 200 square feet! This makes the flowering shrubs ideal for covering eye sores around a property, and for filling large spaces.

If you are feeling overwhelmed deciding which Hydrangeas to choose for your garden, here are a few suggestions for you!

The top 5 most popular Hydrangeas are:

1. Limelight

• The Limelight ranks as the most popular Hydrangea due to its easy-growing nature.

2. Little Lime

• Like the Limelight, Little Lime Hydrangeas also start out as a green color. However, the Little Limes turn pink in the fall!

3. Incrediball

• Incrediballs are incredible for attracting butterflies!

4. Firelight

• Firelights stay true to their name by turning a vivid red color in the fall!

5. Bobo

• Bobos will continue to bloom beautiful white flowers until the white frost of winter hits them!

There is a multitude of reasons to love the fantastic mid-summer bloomer that is the Hydrangea. From the wide range of color options to the variety of shapes and sizes that different Hydrangea cultivars offer, there is a Hydrangea shrub for any yard project you can think of. It is time to plant Hydrangeas today! Stop by Patuxent Nursery in Bowie, Maryland today to search for the Hydrangea that best suits your lifestyle!