Panicle Hydrangea: Varieties And Features

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

Read the previous part. ← Types and varieties of hydrangeas, tree hydrangea

Growing hydrangeas in the Northwest of Russia, part 2

Panicle hydrangea

Panicle hydrangea

The panicle hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata) is found in the wild in Japan, China, South Sakhalin in the form of trees or shrubs 2-5 meters high, and sometimes more. This is a very unpretentious, stable species in the North-West, withstanding even very severe winters without shelter. In our gardens, it is one of the best ornamental plants that can be grown in the form of a bush, single or multi-stemmed tree.

It can grow in one place for more than 40 years. The shoots are brown, woody quickly, which contributes to the high cold resistance of the plant. The leaves of the panicle hydrangea are more oblong than those of the treelike hydrangea, and are also oppositely located. Flowering occurs at the ends of most shoots of the current year, and therefore is very abundant. The buds appear in late June, but bloom very slowly, and the main flowering occurs in August and September.

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The inflorescences are pyramidal in shape, consisting of a mixture of fertile and sterile flowers, first greenish and then white or creamy. By autumn, in the sun, the inflorescences of paniculate hydrangea turn pink, turn brick, pale purple and turn slightly green again.

More recently, in Russia, mainly the garden form of the panicle hydrangea Grandiflora was grown, i.e. large-flowered, which has large, up to 30 cm long, dense inflorescences, consisting mainly of sterile flowers. A small number of fertile flowers are collected at the top of the inflorescence. They smell like honey, and bees always hover around them during flowering. Plants can be very large.

The old varieties also gained some distribution: Kyushu, Praecox, Tardiva, but, according to most gardeners, they were inferior in decorativeness to the Grandiflora hydrangea. And abroad, this hydrangea was also the most common, and in some countries the abbreviated name: PG-Paniculata Grandiflora was synonymous with the species name paniculate hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata).

Now there is a real boom in the creation of new varieties of panicle hydrangea, and most of the previously created varieties and new products enter our market. Unfortunately, not a single variety is known to have been created in Russia, although panicle hydrangea can be grown almost everywhere. It is a pity that the descriptions of new varieties usually do not indicate their significant differences, advantages and disadvantages in comparison with other varieties and, above all, with the form of Grandiflora. Usually, the description given for a certain variety can be attributed to very many other varieties, which makes it very difficult to choose a variety for purchase. Growing relatively new varieties of panicle hydrangea for several years, I have not found any significant advantages over the hydrangea Grandiflora.

Although, judging by their description, almost all varieties are very resistant and winter-hardy, however, they grow in our gardens relatively recently and have not been tested under extreme weather conditions. Perhaps some of them will be less hardy than Grandiflora. The winter hardiness of adult hydrangeas of this form is simply amazing: two such hydrangeas have been growing in my garden in the suburbs of St. Petersburg for more than 30 years, reaching a height of four meters. They were not affected even in the critical frosts of -42oC in January 1986, as well as in other unfavorable winters with very damp, cold or erratic weather. At the same time, many other plants, in particular apple trees, suffered greatly.

Features of hydrangea varieties

Panicle hydrangea Magic moonlight

Despite the similarity of the appearance of different varieties of panicle hydrangea, they differ in growth, growth pattern and strength of shoots, size and structure of inflorescences, color, especially in the autumn period. When choosing a variety, I advise you to pay attention to the following features of the varieties.

1. All panicle hydrangeas have a conical shape of inflorescences 10-35 cm long, while there are varieties with narrower panicles of an elongated shape, and there are more rounded ones with a blunt top. The structure of the inflorescence can be different. The inflorescence can consist almost exclusively of large sterile "flowers" and be very dense, heavy (shape and size may vary slightly). But openwork inflorescences, including flowers of different types: small bisexual (fertile) and large sterile flowers, lighter, do not break off from wind and snow, do not bend.

Many gardeners value hydrangeas with large dense inflorescences more, but openwork inflorescences are more graceful, easier to combine with other plants. The combination of varieties with different structure of inflorescences looks very interesting. The most common varieties with large sterile inflorescences are: Grandiflora (Grandiflora), Limelight (Limelight), Vanille Fraise (Vanilla Fraz), Magical Moonlight (Magic Moonlight), Phantom (Phantom). Varieties with openwork inflorescences: Kyushu (Kyushu), Tardiva (Tardiva), Pink Diamond (Pink Diamond), Pinky Winky (Pinky Winky), Great Star (Great Star) and others.

2. The main color of inflorescences of paniculate hydrangea is white. As with all hydrangeas, at the beginning of flowering, these inflorescences are green, a green tint appears even after the bisexual flowers have faded and the sterile ones have dried. But in the midst of flowering, the shade of "white" can be different. There are varieties with more snow-white "flowers" (Vanilla Fraz, Great Star) or cream ones (Grandiflora, Kiushu). Greenish-lemon (lime) hydrangeas (Limelight, Magic Moonlight, Silver Dollar) are popular. Some varieties already have a pink hue in the midst of flowering (Vanilla Fraz, Pink Diamond, Pinky Winky). In most varieties, the inflorescences turn pink by autumn The intensity of pinking, in addition to varietal characteristics, depends on the growing conditions, mainly light, and weather conditions of a given year.

An increase in temperature, illumination, direct sunlight enhances the autumn color of panicle hydrangea inflorescences. Cultivars close to Vanilla Fraz have a brighter raspberry color compared to the brownish, brick shade of autumn Grandiflora. The varieties Magic Flame and Magical Fire acquire a burgundy color by autumn. You can create interesting compositions based on paniculate hydrangeas, built on the color nuances of different varieties.

Panicle hydrangea Vanilla fraz

3. Many varieties have more upright, strong growth, stronger shoots, less branching compared to Grandiflora, for example: Pink Diamond, Tardiva, Kiushu, Phantom. Most panicle hydrangeas in our conditions, depending on the care, and most importantly - pruning, reach a height of 2-2.5 meters, and you can grow plants up to 4 meters. Recently, there have been shorter varieties that are convenient for small gardens and containers - Pinky Winky, Last Post (Last Post), Dart's Little Dot (Darts Little Dot), Bomshel (Bomshel) and others, not exceeding 1 meter.

4. All panicle hydrangeas bloom for a very long time, already at the beginning of July their blossoming inflorescences are very decorative. Fading away, they do not lose their decorative effect, especially if the weather is not too humid, rainy. Decorativeness is completely lost only after severe frosts. At the same time, it is possible to distinguish the earlier Prakoks, Kiushu and later varieties - Tardiva.

Summing up, I can say that the growth, shape of the bush, the size of the inflorescences and even the color strongly depend on the conditions of growth, care and formation of the plant, pruning. Depending on the variety, these conditions and agricultural techniques should vary somewhat. Under optimal conditions and care, almost any variety can produce a very beautiful, proportional, stable and abundantly flowering plant. Moreover, it can be a wide bush or tree with one or more trunks.

New varieties require observation under our conditions for several years under different weather conditions, the selection of optimal agricultural technology, and especially pruning. Shelters for the winter, except for mulching the trunk circle, they do not require, and it is impossible to cover a large, not flexible enough plant. For most varieties, especially for standard forms and when grown in windy areas that are dangerous from the point of view of snow damage, it is necessary to tie the plants to strong supports.

The most decorative varieties in my garden are: Vanilla Fraz, Phantom, Magic Moonlight, Limelight and, of course, Grandiflora. I have several copies of them, formed in different ways.

Tatyana Popova, gardener

+7 (904) 631-55-57, +7 (812) 272-87-66

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