Tree Hydrangea In Your Garden

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

One of the most decorative and long-flowering shrubs, which for some reason is not widespread in our gardens, is the tree hydrangea.

In almost every front garden, lilacs, mock-mushrooms, and various rose hips (park roses) bloom. But in a rare garden there are hydrangeas.

For most people, hydrangea is associated with a luxurious potted plant, pink and blue hats of which, in recent times, adorned almost all solemn events in our country. This is a large-leaved or garden hydrangea, which, when trying to grow in open ground, usually dies in the first or second winter, and only very experienced gardeners can get abundant flowering from it, spending a lot of effort and choosing the most winter-hardy forms.

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Another thing is a tree hydrangea. The flowering of this species in the conditions of the Leningrad region, depending on the weather, begins in mid-late July and continues until the end of September. There are few plants in our gardens that would delight the gardener with such a long flowering. Moreover, these are not individual flowers, namely, a profusely blooming, from 1.2 to 2 meters high, bush with huge (depending on the variety and care) - from 15 cm to 25 cm in diameter - white inflorescences. The fact is that rather large flowers (1.5-2 cm) are sterile, therefore, they do not set seeds and do not wither for a long time.

The tree hydrangea bush on the lawn is a stunning sight. And growing in partial shade, against the background of coniferous or dark-leaved shrubs, creates a "long-playing" light spot.

Hydrangea tree-like in its life cycle to some extent resembles an ordinary raspberry. Of course, she does not "run", but every year from the base of the bush gives growth. These shoots do not bloom in the first year, the unripe tops (depending on the severity of winter) freeze by 20-40 cm. But in the second year, strong shoots with magnificent inflorescences at the ends develop from the preserved buds. The higher the buds are located on the shoot, the larger the inflorescence and the earlier it will bloom.

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In order to have guaranteed flowering every year, it makes sense to cover the base of the bush for the winter. It can be simple hilling to a height of 30-40 cm with peat, humus or just earth on frozen soil. You can bend the shoots and cover them with a dry sheet or sawdust, but in this case you need a waterproof cover on top (but not on the sides! - for ventilation) made of old film, roofing material, iron sheet.

In the spring, as the soil thaws, the shelter is removed, mechanically damaged and frozen parts of the shoots are removed, fed with any nitrogen-containing fertilizer.

Hydrangea is very responsive to soil mulching with humus. If all these conditions are met, then flowering is guaranteed. Well, if in the first half of summer 2-3 additional fertilizing with organic fertilizers is made (infusion of mullein, bird droppings, fermented herbs), then the flowering will be luxurious.

Like all hydrangeas, the tree hydrangea prefers rich, slightly acidic soils, but this species feels great on neutral soils and even tolerates slightly alkaline ones, although it feels oppressed on them. And, of course, watering is a necessary event.

Tree hydrangea can be propagated by dividing the bush and grafting.

In our gardens, in addition to the usual (wild) form, which, in addition to decorative sterile ones, also has fertile small flowers, there is the Sterilis form (Sterilis), in the flat inflorescence of which all flowers are sterile.

In recent years, the Anabel form has appeared with hemispherical inflorescences up to 30 cm in diameter.

It seems to me that this grateful and long-flowering plant should take its rightful place in our gardens.