Growing Hydrangea Paniculata In Cold Climates

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

How to grow a panicle hydrangea

Every gardener dreams of a beautiful garden. For the garden to be beautiful from spring to autumn, we must plant decorative flowering shrubs in it. They are irreplaceable in the garden. In April, the very first daphne will bloom with delicate lilac flowers, in May forsythia, lilacs will bloom, then chubushniks, all kinds of Potentilla, spirea and weigels.

The garden will not do without bushes with decorative foliage, such as derens, elderberries, red-leaved and yellow-leaved bladders, viburnum and maples. And one cannot do without luxurious barberries, which are red-leaved and variegated - speckled and beautiful flashes; they are dwarf and tall, spreading and erect - there is no end to the variety. And finally, at the end of July or in August, the luxurious beauty panicle hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata) begins to bloom.

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Now we will talk about the agricultural technology of this beautiful shrub in our garden. The native land of panicle hydrangea is the southeastern regions of China, it grows both on Sakhalin and in Japan. This is a shrub 2-3 meters high. The hydrangea owes its popularity, first of all, to its huge openwork inflorescences, which are located at the tops of the shoots. And if you create all the necessary conditions for panicle hydrangea, then a miracle will bloom in your garden - the pride of your garden - hydrangea.

For planting, we choose a sunny, preferably windy place, without drafts. Partial shade is also acceptable. Hydrangea is a moisture-loving plant, but does not tolerate stagnant water, swamps.

So:

1. The planting hole should be 70x70 cm, depth - 50-60 cm. If the site is clayey, all clay must be removed.

2. Fill the planting hole with peat, and only peat. You cannot put any manure, even rotted manure, under the planting of hydrangeas. You cannot add ash, not even one handful. You can add crumbling needles from spruce branches to the planting hole, which covered the garden for the winter.

3. After planting, hydrangea should be watered abundantly. In dry summers, it needs to be watered constantly.

If manure cannot be added to the planting pit, then it is possible and even necessary to mulch the panicle hydrangea with rotted manure, the so-called compost. Hortense loves it. I am not a supporter of mineral fertilizers, I like to use compost, which contains absolutely all the trace elements necessary for any plant.

A very important factor for the abundant flowering of hydrangeas is correct pruning. In order for the hydrangea to fully bloom, it must be properly cut. In the fall, we cut off only inflorescences on the bushes. And only at the end of February and the beginning of March we start the real pruning. And no later.

Why is it so important? Hydrangea has a very powerful sap flow. In the middle of March or at the end of the month, you may be late with pruning. And if you unknowingly cut out a thick branch, the hydrangea will run out of juice, and no amount of putty will help here. The hydrangea could die completely! Or it will hurt for a long time. Therefore, we cut out only thin, weak or broken branches after winter. A branch that has gone to the middle of the crown and which will rub against another, wounding it, is also desirable to remove. You do the pruning in accordance with what you want to get from the bush. If you want to get many, many, but small inflorescences, you do an easy pruning, in other words, you leave almost the entire shoot, removing only the frozen part. I know from experience that there are many such gardeners.

But it would be more correct to cut the panicle hydrangea into one or two, maximum three buds. And do not feel sorry for her and think that after such a short pruning, the hydrangea will not bloom or will bloom in single inflorescences. Until late autumn, and autumn is now lingering and warm, you will enjoy huge, up to 25-30 cm in volume, openwork inflorescences in the Grandiflora variety and up to 50 cm in the Floribunda variety. And there will be so many inflorescences that you will allow yourself to cut one branch for a bouquet. In the fall, with the first frost, your hydrangea will turn pink and become even more beautiful.

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Diseases and pests of hydrangea

Hydrangea paniculata is affected by powdery mildew. Here drugs "Vectra" and "Skor" will help you. Against aphids, spider mites, we use drugs karbofos, Actellik, Fufanon. For planting, choose only high-quality, healthy material. Put those twigs that remained after pruning in the water, having previously scrubbed the leaves.

Below, under the kidney, make a slanting cut, at the top - a straight cut. A cutting is needed 20-25 cm long. After 2-3 weeks, callus (a small growth) is formed, then feel free to plant the cuttings in a special mixture (as for any other cuttings), and by the fall, small seedlings with a decent root system are obtained. After 2-3 years, you get an adult plant that can be planted in a permanent place in the garden.

Treelike hydrangea (Gydrangea arborescens)

The bush is 130-150 cm high. This type of hydrangea has the most famous variety - Annabelle. Treelike hydrangea loves moist, fertile soils. Its location is the sun, partial shade. With a lot of freezing, you can cut it to ground level, anyway, the hydrangea has time to grow and will bloom well with large, spherical inflorescences. They are fed in early spring and at the time of budding with a slurry solution. In hot summer, abundant watering is necessary.

If you follow all these simple activities, the hydrangea will delight you with luxurious long flowering for 3-4 months.

Good luck to all amateur gardeners, good weather and good mood in the coming season.

Valentina Sabenina, amateur gardener