how close do i plant hydrangea bushes when i want them to make a natural fence?
hydrangea natural fence?
I have a lacecap hydrangea that in about 4 years has grown to about 3.5 feet high and about as wide. I don't think it will get a whole lot larger than that, but I also don't think that kind is hardy up in your area. What kind of hydrangea are you thinking of using for this? Peonies are very pretty and could be used as a sort of hedgerow up in your area. They smell wonderful and the doubles remind me of roses--without the thorns, fungus, and pruning requirements :)
plantranch.com has some nice hydrangeas. i have ordered from them before. they come bareroot and the stems are already 12" and sometimes taller. nikko blue a pink and peegee a white are available.
maybe they wouldn't be tall enough for what i want. hmmmm but peonies arn't what i want either, not tall enough.
Debbie, Nikko Blue won't be stem-hardy for you (only hardy 6b and south). The roots will put up new branches every year, but you won't get flowers. 'Annabelle' or an oak-leaf hydrangea would be hardy; both are gorgeous (hard to think of a hydrangea that isn't ;D
'Annabelle' gets to about 6', the oak-leafs can be from 3' to 10', depending on the variety you choose.
i would really like something that is pink or blue. are any of the oakleafs that?
Debi,
The color of many Hydrangea are determined by the acidity of your soil. If you are striving for a particular color, you can add soil amendments that will steer your Hydrangeas to that hue.
There are many excellent nurseries that specialize in Hydrangea. I would check the Garden Watchdog first and see the ones that DG recommends. Also, do a search on Goggle for Hydrangea Nurseries, you will get several choices. Personally, I have purchased from Hydrangea Plus and Wilkerson's Nursery. Both have an excellent inventory with photos and descriptions. You can't go wrong with either, IMHO.
Debi, here is a link with a whole lot of info about some of the different oakleaf hydrangeas:
http://www.nobleplants.com/articles/hydrangeaquercifolia.htm
The author is Michael Dirr, who is very respected. As you see, the flowers start out green, turn white or cream, and age to pink, with a few aging dark pink or burgundy. Hope this helps!
Yep, as lupinelover has pointed out, H. quercifolia ("Oakleaf Hydrangeas" don't come in pink or blue, but they sure are pretty, and they really do provide year-round interest. I'm also not sure if they're hardy all the way to zone 5a :(
I recently came across a cut-leaf lilac in Forestfarm's catalog, and I'm going to try a couple of those this year. If you're interested in a living hedge, lilacs are hard to beat. And I thought the cutleaf variety was a nice change of pace, and will provide a nice backdrop to other plants once it's done blooming.
If you don't have one yet, I'd suggest reqeusting a copy of the Forestfarm catalog. It's huge - big enough to be a doorstop - and is chock-full of plants (no glossy photos or hype, just brief descriptions of each plant. Which means you also have to have the PDB or some other resource handy to look at images, but it's worth the juggling when you see the vast selection they offer.)
I love Lilacs, WHEN they are in bloom. The only problem is they are NOT a multi-seasonal shrub.
Certain Hydrangea will give you several different seasons of color, such as the Oak Leaf varieties. However, Hydrangea grow in pt. shade/shade in consistantly moist areas.
Have you also considered the very versatile Viburnums? There are a multitude of varieties of this specie that tolerate many different growing locations. They produce beautiful flowers (some of which are fragrant), berries, vibrant colors, textured leaves, and add structure to ones garden. Basically, Viburnums are a multi-seasonal shrub and/or tree that lend themselves beautifully to everyone's garden.
thanks shirley,
this gives me something new to check out. one reason i love hydrangeas is because the are multiseasonal. plus i just love the look of them, and you can let them go wild. :)
of course i have seen first hand the problems with hydrangeas. i've planted several. last year when we had a 90 degree week in april, and then the freezes came back two of the hydrangeas i have froze and lost all there buds. they grew, but from the source, not the branches that were already there. the other 3 that were pee gee's did fine, so those are good here.
i have purchased from hydrangea plus. that was zoned for my area and didn't survive the late frost, as i said above. :(