rescued hydrangea

On first moving into our house 18 months ago I was confronted with a complete nightmare as shown in this photo, I In the centre foreground you may just spot a very unhappy hydrangea. I was in two minds, dig it out or try to nurture it back to some kind of health.
As there was little else I could possibly salvage and being a little strapped for cash after buying the house, moving expenses, you know the score, I decided on the later. Unfortunately I was forced to cut it back right to the ground in order to deal with some very nasty weeds that had invaded the root ball. I then carefully dug the whole thing out and proceeded to weed it and transplanted it back in the same position. Not being 100% sure of the variety I wondered if it would grow on to flower the following year. No such luck so I had to wait.
I'm sure you can imagine my joy when this happened this year?
Posting a picture right after this.

Reborn! I had no idea what what the colour would be.

Sorry for going on a little but I'm happy!

Very pretty! I'm glad you were able to rescue it!

It's gorgeous! It must be very rewarding to know that you allowed it to have new life!

It's beautiful! I understand how you feel. A hydrangea that I planted summer before last just barely survived 2 summers of drought. With the excessive rain this Spring it's huge & blooming beautifully. I'm overjoyed. It's nice how the small things in life can bring us such happiness. : )

I am so pleased, not just to have rescued my hydrangea but that others appreciate my effort.
You know It's easy to go buy a plant from a nursery dig a hole and plant it but not nearly as rewarding.
Thank you all for the encouragement and kind comments.

pajonica

It's gorgeous! Great job!!

Wow pajonica! Give yourself a huge pat on the back. Not only is the hydrangea beautful, but the entire yard. What a difference a year makes (with a lot of hard work, I'm sure) Outstanding!!

Others appreciation makes hard work easy! I'll post a photo taken in April giving a better view.
Thank you,

pajonica

Wow, pajonica. I'll echo that sentiment. It's wonderful that you didn't waste a perfectly good hydrangea by throwing it out. It looks fabulous. And your whole yard looks so very nice.

Congratulations to you and thanks for sharing. It reminds us all to take care of what we have . . .

Kathy

Here's one taken this morning. The green things on the grass are pods fallen from my magnolia!
Hydrangeas are a huge favourite of the Japanese and now is the time, parks, gardens, roadside verges, everywhere you
look! ajitsai, Japanese word for hydrangeas.

pajonica

I just discovered the Japanese Hydrangeas (serratas) last year after a tour at Heronswood nursery here in Kingston WA and a in love!! Things that do well in Japan generally do well here

love the aerial shot of it! Hydrangeas are the one thing that make me wish I lived in a slightly warmer zone. We have to provide winter protection to ensure that we get blooms, which is really a pain. (but somehow always seems worth it when you have shrub covered in pretty flowers for most of the summer).

Have you tried the reblooming ones (Endless Summer series and Forever & Ever series)? They bloom on new wood as well as old, so while you'll get more blooms if you protect them you will still get the new wood blooms even if you don't.

I think I'll grow many hydrangeas for next season after my really positive experience with this one. I've a really good sized space at the side of the house cleared to bare dirt. I have seen so many different cultivars here and love em all, unfortunately I don't have room for them all! love the idea of Endless Summer series and Forever & Ever series I need to check these at my local nursery. OK hands up I'm hooked! To the point of climbing the magnolia to take the photo.
LOL!

pajonica

Nice job. You get another pat on the back.

My back hurts! LOL

Thanks.
pajonica

Katie." take care of what we have" My philosophy of life in general.
Japanese plants doing well, of course they just need mildly acidic to neutral soil and love!

Thanks, pajonica

You can never have too many hydrangeas, imho. :-D

Aren't you proud of yourself?? Great job on the hydrangea and the yard!

Wow, good job!

Thanks for all the encouragement guys.

pajonica

Hi pajonica, nice to meet you over on the Morning Glory forum - thank you for inviting us over. I am so going to enjoy following the progress of your garden - hope you keep us posted of all the goings on.

But, I must say, regarding hydrangeas, I have especially loved the way some Japanese woodcuts make them seem almost planetary in relation to a small bird - not a subject I know anything about - but I sure have enjoyed discovering this way of enjoying flowers through the internet. For those who haven't seen this, here's what I mean:

http://www.erawoodblockprints.com/items/851322/en1store.html - I don't buy art, so am not selling here - this was the first google result for Shoson + hydrangea I could use as an example

Hello to everyone else - cultivars of Ipomoea nil are downright *planetary*, too - hope y'all come on over

karen

Karen welcome to the hydrangea forum. I will post more garden pics soon. The woodcuts are lovely aren't they. I will see if
I can find some more examples for you!
Many thanks.

Jon

Jon,

It seems you are having the same experience I had when I bought my house - a beautiful abandoned garden waiting for loving hands. I'm sure it will be a source of great joy for you!

Are you set on the bougaivilleas?

Hi Roberta, so far I have been completely unable to source bougainvilleas, or see any growing here in Japan.
My local nurseryman suggested a trumpet vine! Don't think I'll be planting one of those on the back wall of my house!
Thanks for the follow up.

Jon

More detail over on the garden design forum http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1000966/

Jon

Wow, Jon, just stumbled onto this thread. You did a fantastic job clearing and restoring that yard! And your hydrangea is just lovely. Don't you love how resilient plants can be?

Thanks bookers! Plants in my experience can survive some neglect, I guess that's the way nature works.
However they always respond to the care of a gardener, pleasing them with a lovely show of flower and foliage.
I'm sure they know when they are loved! So glad you found this thread.

Jon

Here' a shot of it now faded to these shades!

Jon

This seems to be the place to ask my question. My DH bought me 2 beautiful Endless Summers for my b-day this month. We planted them and the smaller one is doing fine but the large one just seems to be failing. I've watered it and covered it with burlap to keep any hot sun off, but it still looks bad. With it being so large, should I prune it back some? I know that's what I'd do with other transplants, just never have grown hydrangeas (I ALWAYS wanted to! the present was a complete surprise!!!) Anyway, I'm so scared I'm killing it/it's dying that I really need help!!!
Thanks in advance!
Deb

Hi Deb and welcome to the hydrangea forum. Mid summer is not the best time to transplant hydrangeas,
the larger the plant the more it'll struggle. I think the best course of action is perhaps reduce the size by about one third. this will help to reduce transpiration and encourage root growth. Do not attempt to feed the plant at
this stage. Mulch 3 to 4 inches around the base of the plant to help prevent moisture loss. Do not over water,
a little shading is a good idea. Hydrangeas do not like wet feet and do best in a well drained soil but not dry.
I think you would do well to post this question on the main hydrangea forum, where you will find a wealth of
knowledge from some very helpful people. Good luck!

Jon

Hi, Jon,
Thanks for the advice! I hated to plant in the hottest time of year but my DH couldn't find hydrangeas until just recently. Not sure what that was about, but the nursery he was using is one of the "high falutin'" ones of the Houston area. And I did figure out that with all the growth it would probably have some issues - just wanted to ask someone with the experience of growing hydrangeas. I sure appreciate your help. I'm headed out to take care of this right now and then off to San Marcos to visit my college age son.
Have a good day!!!

Your more than welcome.

Jon

Hi, Jon,
Great news! I went out to cut some of the limbs back as we discussed and I'd already put the burlap around it. I looked over the burlap and bless me soul - It was perky as could be! There were quite a few dead leaves, of course, but all the new growth and the top growth was fine. I couldn't believe what a huge change overnight brought! So, it's doing well and I really appreciate your help~ I'm sending a pic of it - hopefully it'll work!
Deb

Hi Deb, My that is looking good, well done you! That will flower next year for sure.

Jon

Hi, Jon - I think you're right. It's already putting on new growth at the tips! This is like getting a new toy!

Sure feels good to save a plant I know! This thread of mine has truly become one of rescued hydrangeas.
so pleased for your success ^_^

Jon