Hi Everyone, I need some help & advice. My parent had just move into a new home & my mom planted two Big-leaf Hydrangeas (they were pink), she wanted Blue ones but they didn't have any well, my MIL had told me if you put an cast-iron pot near them on the ground they would change color (to blue that is) well, my mom put a cast iron chicken near them & the flowers turn an UGLY green-brownist puke color. So she remove the iron & is now waiting to see what will happen. Can anybody tell me why they turn such an ugly color & will they turn blue or back to pink. This is a new yard with lot of shade & the gound is mostly red clay. Thank for any advice.
Color of Hydrangeas
you can buy chemicals at the garden centre that alter the acidity of the soil to change the color of your plants.
mark
if the soil is acid you'll get blue flowers (on most varieties)...if the soil is neutral you should end up with pink or lilac-colored flowers. Store-bought sulphur should lower the pH and turn them blue...or you can also feed the plant cottonseed meal (which is recommended for acid-loving plants and helps keep the acid level)...as for me, I like to mix a couple cups of vinegar with a gallon of water for my gardenias from time to time, especially when they look like they need a boost. That will also lower the pH. (For a commercial product, you can go buy "Sul-po-mag"...which contains sulphur as well as potassium and magnesium.) Hope this helps!
If your mother lives in Kilgore in East Texas, she probably has acid soil and they will naturally turn blue over time. Just putting the skillet on the ground shouldn't have had much effect on them. Probably trying the change from pink to blue after being putting into acid soil caused the odd color. Next year's blooms should be back to blue.
Bulblady is correct, the cast iron frying pan did not cause the flowers to change colors, unfortunately thats one of those old wives tales. It is based on the principle that the iron will leach from the pan acidifying the soil, which it might to a miniscule degree over a period of several years, but never enough to change your pink hydrangea to blue. As hydrangea flowers age, some will naturally turn a greenish color, that's probably what happened with yours. The flowers will not turn back to blue or pink this year. You can't change the color of the blooms in the middle of the blooming cycle anyway, the soil needs to be acid from the start. Look for aluminum sulfate, years ago I used to buy it from Gurney's, they may still sell it. Cottonseed meal is good too. You may also want to have a soil test done just to see if your soil is acid enough already. Too much acid will kill even acid loving plants.