I'm a new homeowner and new to DG. My husband has just begun to landscape and right now we're working on the flowerbed that runs across the front of our house. We're pulling out four trees that were obviously planted when they were small and meant to be there as shrubs because the base of each tree is only about 6-8 inches from the house. All four are big and akward looking and they're having to grow at an angle to get away from the house. A friend is going to gently dig them up and plant them along his fence.
Meanwhile, I would like to plant something less tree-like in their place. I love hydrangea's and this is a shady spot so I was wondering if I could plant them in front of my house as an alternative to shrubbery? There is about 3.5 feet from the house to the sidewalk that runs in front. Would that be enough space to allow them to grow? I don't necessary want/need them to get big. But I wouldn't want to keep them cut back unless they could tolerate that and stay healthy.
Any feedback would be appreciated.
Thank you,
Stephanie in Mobile AL (zone 8b)
Hydrangea as foundation planting?
Most hydrangeas are going to want to be bigger than that, and if you try to prune them to that size you may not end up getting the amount of blooms you want. Maybe there are some newer dwarf cultivars though that I'm not familiar with.
Here is a picture of the house showing the shrub-like trees that are coming out this week.
Hi, I'm new to DG and just planted my first hydrangea (Parzifal) last spring, so I don't know a lot, but based on some of the garden catalogs I've read, there are a few varieties of dwarf hydrangeas.
There is the Cityline series which has 3 or 4 varieties that can even be planted in containers. Also Forever Pink is supposed to be pretty small.
Wayside Gardens has all of these; however, based on ratings in Garden Scout, they don't get very good marks, so I don't know if you want to take a chance with them. I know that Bluestone Perennials has Forever Pink. They are great to do business with and get high marks. That's where I got mine from. Only problem is the plants are pretty small, but you're not going to pay much either.
I know I've seen the Cityline series online at other garden centers. With a little research you should be able to find several sources. Hope this info helps.
I just checked out the Forever Pinks on Bluestone Perennial's website and they seem to be exactly what I'm looking for. Thank you very much for your suggestion.
The website: http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/b/bp/HYFPP.html
It says that the pink blooms occur in high PH soil. But since I live in the Azalea city (Mobile AL) and Azaleas are everywhere....and since I've read that they grow in acid soil, and since I usually see blue hydrangeas around here.....then should I assume that even the "forever pinks" would still give me blue flowers? The description on the website says, "For some types flowers are blue in acid soils, pink in high pH soils." But that sounds like it might be a generic statement.
I am new to gardening, but I have a couple of hydrangeas and actually like the blue blooms better (or rather anything closer to a purple) so I have been researching how their colors change also. It is absolutely fascinating to me! However, it does sound to me that if your soil is highly acidic then the blooms will probably turn bluer than pink. I haven't tried to change the color as they haven't bloomed yet so I'm waiting to see what they come out with first.
I hope you find what you are looking for!
We have hydrangeas as foundation plants, quite a few actually, and they do great.
gwen
some nandinas might be good for the same area