Blue hydrangea: planting and care. Indoor hydrangea care at home, watering and propagation

Pink, blue, white, purple? What can you expect?
Hydrangeas have a reputation for being chameleon-like, but not all species change color. Although many hydrangeas turn mauve as they age, if you have beautiful white, lush blooms, you won't be able to change them to pink or blue. To get pink or blue flowers, you will need grandiflora hydrangea, Hydrangea macrophylla.
You can control the color of your hydrangea. To do this, you don’t need to become a chemist at all, you need to understand why hydrangeas change their color.

How to make hydrangea blue?

Hydrangeas turn blue in response to aluminum in the soil. This requires two conditions:

1. Soil pH should be slightly acidic (5.2-5.5).
First, do a soil test to determine the existing pH. Adding aluminum sulfate to the soil will help lower the soil pH if necessary. Caution: Not all plants tolerate acidic soil, and nearby plants may be affected. Always follow package directions when adding soil amendments.

2. Aluminum must be present in the soil.
If your soil has aluminum and its pH is low, your hydrangeas are likely already blue. But if you only have naturally acidic soil, you may need to add aluminum sulfate.
Fertilizer - A fertilizer high in potassium and low in phosphorus will help maintain the blue color. Avoid superphosphate and bone meal, which are sometimes used to promote fuller blooms.

How to change the color of hydrangea to pink?

Hydrangeas turn pink when they are stripped of aluminum. This can be done as follows:

1. Add dolomitic lime (lime with magnesium oxide) to raise the soil pH to 6.0-6.5. During this period, hydrangeas cannot obtain aluminum from the soil, but do not suffer from lack of other nutrients and chlorosis. You don't need to make your soil truly alkaline, as many people mistakenly believe.

2. Grow hydrangeas in containers. In all seriousness, soil-free potting mixes typically lack aluminum, so your hydrangeas have no chance of turning blue.
Fertilizer - Use a fertilizer high in phosphorus, as phosphorus prevents hydrangeas from obtaining aluminum.

Once your hydrangeas have turned blue or pink, adding more amendments to the soil will not help enhance the depth of color. Color may vary from season to season due to weather conditions, stress experienced by plants, and environment. Plants planted near a concrete foundation or concrete walkway may never turn blue due to the lime that leaches from the concrete.

Changing the soil for hydrangea color is not a one-time job. You will have to maintain an amended soil condition.

The most interesting

Not all beginning flower growers know that “natural” natural color hydrangeas - white or pink. But other colors can be obtained artificially. And it's not difficult at all. At the very beginning of flowering, all its flowers have the same color - pale green. It is at this stage that you can intervene to change its color. However, it should be noted that white flowers, due to a lack of pigment, rarely change color. But you can successfully experiment with pink ones.

Many gardeners really like blue hydrangea, others prefer pink. But today we will talk about how to grow blue hydrangea. In nature and in flower beds, hydrangeas reach a height of up to three meters.
The color of the spherical flowers fascinates with its beauty. It happens that you purchased a blue or blue hydrangea, but a pink hydrangea grew. Now we will share tips on what to do so that your blue hydrangea still blooms.
Great importance The color of hydrangea is influenced by the composition of the soil.
If you put a little effort into changing the soil chemistry, you can easily change the color of these amazing flowers.
Here are some tips on how to change White color hydrangeas to blue, and pink to lilac.

1. Before flowering hydrangea, water the plants with aluminum alum. Dosage: 5 grams of alum per 1 liter of water. Iron salts, enriching the soil, give hydrangea flowers shades from blue to blue.
2. With the same success, aluminum alum can be replaced with iron filings or simply stick old nails into the ground next to the hydrangea bush.
Like this simple methods you can change the color of the chic hydrangea balls.

Hydrangeas have a reputation for being chameleon-like, but not all species change color. Although many hydrangeas turn mauve as they age, if you have beautiful white, lush blooms, you won't be able to change them to pink or blue. To get pink or blue flowers, you will need grandiflora hydrangea, Hydrangea macrophylla. Hydrangea can change color (white to blue, and pink to blue). For this purpose in earth mixtures when replanting plants, add aluminum or iron sulfate - up to 15-20 g per 1 kg of land

What's better? Aluminum alum or aluminum sulfate? They write about iron that it does not always stain.

To obtain blue flowers, water pink hydrangea with a solution of potassium alum (5-10 g per liter of water). If you water dark pink specimens with the same solution, the flowers will turn lilac, and the red ones will turn purple. When using aluminum or iron sulfate, you can get Blue colour. A good effect is obtained by spraying with a solution of aluminum citrate (50 grams per liter of water), once a week from the moment the buds appear. Also, the color may change when the soil pH decreases to 4.5 (at normal 5,5).

Change Appreciation of pink color Change to cyan and blue color

Hydrangea will have pink flowers in case it cannot form a blue pigment, which requires aluminum. That is, aluminum in the soil must be converted into a form inaccessible to plants. For this, the soil pH must be above 6.5.

For getting blue flowers For hydrangeas, aluminum must be present in the soil in a form accessible to plants. This is possible in the case of an acidic soil pH below 5.5 and the presence of a sufficient amount of aluminum itself.

If the soil pH in the garden is above 6.5, nothing needs to be done, the hydrangea will bloom pink (possible iron deficiency).

On acidic soil add chalk, fluff lime, ground limestone or dolomite flour several times a year to raise the pH to around 6.0 to 6.2 (be careful not to let the pH rise much above 6.5 when iron deficiency and chlorosis become a problem ). Try to maintain the substrate pH between 6.0 and 6.2.

Do not plant plants that require an acidic soil reaction (azaleas, rhododendrons, heathers) next to pink hydrangea.

Use a fertilizer that is relatively high in phosphorus and nitrogen but low in potassium. Phosphorus forms insoluble chemical compounds with aluminum. Select a fertilizer type with an N:P:K ratio close to 25:10:10. Monoammonium phosphate (11:53:00) can be used.

In areas with very acidic soils, pink hydrangeas are easier to grow in large pots using landless (for example, peat) substrates that contain little aluminum salts. Do not add components containing aluminosilicates - clay, mineral soil, expanded clay - to the peat substrate. In a container it will be much easier to maintain conditions favorable for growing pink hydrangeas; in addition, you can grow varieties that require shelter for the winter.

For growing pink hydrangeas, the best choice would be a UNIVERSAL substrate.

If natural garden soil If the pH is sufficiently acidic, less than 5.5, and contains aluminum, the color of the hydrangea will automatically tend toward shades of blue or purple.
. If the soil in the garden is neutral or alkaline, it is necessary to artificially acidify it in the root zone to a depth of 20-30 cm or replace the soil in the planting hole with previously prepared acidic soil. Non-carbonate soil can be acidified to pH 5.0-5.5 with high-moor peat or agricultural elemental sulfur before planting hydrangeas. Subsequently, the low pH is maintained by regularly watering the plant with a solution (15 g/l) of aluminum sulfate throughout the entire growing season. Do not water dry soil; first moisten it well with clean water.
. Mulch the soil near the hydrangea with acidic materials - high peat, coniferous bark. Do not use marble chips, expanded clay.

It is important that irrigation water does not “contaminate” the soil with calcium. The pH of the water should not be higher than 5.6.
. Soil alkalinity can rise significantly due to lime leaching from building materials. Therefore, the concrete foundation or sidewalk next to which the hydrangea is planted can affect the color.

Fertilizer also affects color change. Feeding with a physiologically acidic complex fertilizer that is low in phosphorus, high in potassium and moderate in nitrogen levels will help produce good blues. The optimal N:P:K ratio is close to 10:5:20. Do not use superphosphate or bone meal.
. Difficult long time maintain a low pH value in alkaline carbonate soils, or soils contaminated with alkaline building materials. In this case, it is better to grow blue hydrangeas in large pots using special acidic peat substrates with aluminum sulfate. To enrich the substrate with aluminum, you can add 5-10% clay by volume. Best choice there will be an ACID substrate FOR CONIFEROUS PLANTS AND RHODODENDRONS. In a container it will be much easier to maintain conditions favorable for growing blue hydrangeas; in addition, you can grow varieties that require shelter for the winter.

Per liter of acidic substrate, you need to add 1.5 g/l of powdered aluminum sulfate. Mix well, moisten and leave for several days. Another method is to water plants in pots with a solution of aluminum sulfate (concentration 10-15 g/l) at the rate of 100 ml of solution per liter of substrate. Control the pH of the substrate. For peat substrate optimal value pH 4.0-4.5. If necessary, repeat the procedure after two weeks. To avoid chemical burns to the roots, fill only the pre-moistened substrate with aluminum sulfate solution. Protect the leaves from contact with the solution.

When grown and cared for at home, indoor hydrangea is a semi-shrub spreading plant, reaching a meter in height, with large oval leaves (10-15 cm long) with jagged edges. Large inflorescences (about 35 cm in length) are umbrella-shaped and consist of sterile small flowers at the edges and fruit bearings in the central part.

The color palette can be adjusted using the soil: more acidic soil colors the flowers blue, neutral soil gives them a white or beige color, and alkaline soil gives them a lilac or pink color. The hydrangea fruit is a capsule with a large number of seeds.

Types and varieties of indoor hydrangea

White and cream hydrangeas

• Hydrangea Mme E. Mouillere – inflorescence diameter up to 20 cm, flowers from 1-5 cm, leaves narrow.

• – flowers correct form, inflorescence diameter up to 20 cm, bush height – 35-40 cm. Blooms early.

Hydrangeas Pink

• - a bush, up to 70 cm high, the inflorescences are quite large (30 cm) of a dark pink hue, the edges of the sepals are deeply cut. Starts to bloom late.

• – has small flowers (up to 5 cm) of pink color, collected in an inflorescence with a diameter of 16-18 cm. The bush reaches a height of 40 cm.

• – the bush reaches a height of 50 cm, blooms with large flowers (up to 6 cm) in inflorescences with a diameter of about 25 cm. It has abundant flowering.

Red hydrangeas

• – burgundy-red inflorescences. It is possible to obtain a purple-burgundy color if you add iron salts or aluminum sulfate to the soil.

• – the diameter of the inflorescences is up to 18 cm, while the flowers themselves are small – no more than 3.5 cm, the height of the stem is 20-25 cm.

Blue hydrangeas

• - a tall bush with bright blue inflorescences.

• – This variety is distinguished by its compactness. Inflorescences with a diameter of up to 20 cm have a peculiarity: over time, the tips of the petals turn green.

Indoor hydrangea care at home

For hydrangeas, the correct temperature regime. On the hottest days of summer, the temperature should not exceed 20°C, and in winter, not lower than 10°C.

Indoor hydrangea does not like direct sunlight, so the most comfortable place will be the south side of the apartment, at a distance of 1-2 meters from the window.

If you have a garden variety, you can familiarize yourself with the rules for planting and caring for hydrangeas in open ground.

Watering hydrangea

In summer, frequent and abundant watering is required, in spring and summer it is reduced, and in winter it is practically eliminated (just moisten the soil a little, avoiding drying out).

Water for irrigation must be settled or frozen (thawed), room temperature. In addition, we must not forget about regular air humidification. Spray with a spray bottle.

Fertilizer for hydrangeas

Fertilizers are added once every two weeks during periods of active growth (the appearance of new shoots) and flowering. Mineral fertilizers are suitable for flowering indoor plants.

Hydrangea changes color

Indoor hydrangea has another unusual feature, namely the ability to make a colored bush.

This can be done using different compositions of the substrate, for example, adding a solution of ammonia-potassium alum (4-5/l) or iron salts will color the inflorescences blue, lime gives a pink or purple color, and white or cream flowers usually grow in neutral soil . Thus, you can make a colorful bush by adding different fertilizers to different parts of the pot.

Hydrangea transplant

Transfer indoor beauty carried out every year, increasing the size of the pot by a couple of centimeters. Replanting should be done with caution.

Place drainage at the bottom of the new pot, sprinkle a little new soil, then carefully remove the flower from the old pot, along with all the soil, and place it in a new place of residence.

Fill the voids with fresh substrate and water. After which a layer of peat is laid on top for mulching (slows down the rate of moisture evaporation).

Do I need to prune hydrangeas for the winter?

Pruning hydrangeas is required. It is held twice a year.

• The first, after the end of flowering, before wintering, when weak, withered shoots are cut to the ground, and strong ones - by half.
• The second time, in the spring, when new shoots become very long, they are shortened so as not to weigh down the plant.

Hydrangea preparing for winter

The hibernation period for hydrangeas begins after flowering ends. At this time, it must be removed to a darker and cooler place.

Having fulfilled this condition, the flower will have time to rest and gain strength after abundant flowering, and already in February the buds will begin to wake up (the plant can be returned to its usual place). Otherwise, the next flowering will not occur earlier than in a year.

Propagation of hydrangea by cuttings in the fall at home

Cuttings are the most reliable way reproduction. If you carry out this procedure in January-February, then by next autumn there will be a real bush of 3-4 shoots, and if later, the plant will put out only one stem. Cuttings with at least three internodes are cut from the root shoots. lower leaves are torn off, and the top ones are cut by half (for large leaves) or by a third (for small ones).

A shoot approximately 8 cm long, placed in a prepared substrate of peat and sand, watered and covered glass jar or cropped plastic bottle, to ensure humidity. Ventilate every day and do not allow the soil to dry out. After about a month, the plant takes root and can be transplanted into a separate pot; for starters, 8-9 cm in diameter will be enough.

Dividing a hydrangea bush

The easiest way to divide a hydrangea bush. This procedure is carried out during the annual transplant.

To do this, the bush is carefully removed from the pot and divided into parts (the number of parts depends on the density of the rhizome), so that each has a sufficient number of roots and shoots. In each divided area, the roots and shoots are shortened and placed in new pots with prepared soil.

Hydrangea from seeds at home

Hydrangea seeds are sown at the end of winter, on a substrate previously prepared and poured into seedling boxes: a mixture of leaf, turf soil, humus, sand and peat (1: 1: 1: 0.5: 0.5). There is no need to sprinkle soil on top.

Moisten and cover with glass or film. Ventilate every day and moisten as necessary. With the emergence of seedlings, the glass (film) is removed and the seedlings are thinned out. As soon as leaves (2-3) appear on the young shoots, they are transplanted into separate pots (7-8 cm in diameter) with the same soil.

Diseases and pests

• Gray rot – affects the plant when the humidity is too high. Treatment: treatment with Bordeaux mixture.
• Spider mites and aphids – affects the bush with insufficient humidity. Treatment: wipe the leaves and shoots with a soapy solution and a sponge; if that doesn’t help, then treat with Actellik after a week.
• The leaves are turning yellow – insufficient watering, lack of nitrogen in the soil or the soil is too alkaline, which causes chlorosis. To restore their strength and color, iron sulfate (10 g/l) or iron sulfate (2 g/l) is added to the water for irrigation.
• Indoor hydrangea begins to dry out (tips dry) - due to insufficient moisture and watering, as well as lack of fertilizers. Correct the shortcomings, otherwise the next consequence will be the falling of leaves and buds. So remember to water, spray and fertilize as needed. Follow the plant, it will tell you.
• Indoor hydrangea does not bloom - this is a consequence of the fact that the plant did not rest in winter, but continued to grow and bloom, spending a lot of energy. At the end of autumn, the bush must be pruned and placed in a cool, dark place for wintering. And in the spring, take it back and continue caring, then the hydrangea will definitely bloom again.
• Appear brown spots on the leaves - lack of watering.
• Light spots on leaves - excess light. Move the flower into the shade. Hydrangea is afraid of direct sunlight.
• Slow flower growth – insufficient amount of fertilizers. Worth feeding.

Even on a very large garden plot It is impossible not to notice the flower bed decorated with large and colorful hydrangea caps. This is wonderful beautiful plant It is so captivating to look at that you simply cannot pass by it. There are more than 35 species of hydrangeas, among which there are varieties that grow well and winter in the Urals and Siberia. But no matter what latitude of our country your garden is located, before buying a beauty, you need to study all the features of its planting, care and cultivation.

Garden hydrangea: photos, types, varieties

Most types of hydrangea are shrubs, but vines and small trees are also found. They all have beautiful large or small leaves, and flowers collected in paniculate or corymbose inflorescences. All inflorescences are located at the tips of the shoots and have sterile or fertile flowers. Most often their color can be white, pink or blue.

Among them it is grown as perennials in the gardens middle zone In Russia there are only tree and paniculate hydrangeas.

Hydrangea tree - photo

The shrub, growing up to one and a half meters in height, has large oval leaves, the length of which reaches 20 cm. Slightly pubescent sheet plates They are distinguished by a heart-shaped notch at the base and jagged edges. They are green above and bluish below. Large sterile and small fertile flowers are collected in corymbose inflorescences, which bloom in the first half of July.

Most suitable for planting in the garden the following varieties of tree hydrangea:

1. The White House variety is a bush with a height of one to one and a half meters. At the ends of its shoots, large shield-shaped inflorescences are formed, consisting of snow-white sterile and creamy-white fertile flowers.
2. The variety "Invincibelle Spirit" grows up to 0.9-1.2 m. Its large inflorescences consist of sterile flowers. At first they are bright pink in color, and over time they fade to light pink.
3. The Incrediball variety is a bush that reaches a height of 1.2-1.5 m and has large spherical white inflorescences.
4. The Hayes Starburst variety is a low bush with thin shoots that can break under the weight of large inflorescences. The inflorescences, consisting of double flowers, reach 25 cm in diameter.
5. The Annabelle variety blooms with white sterile flowers that form large inflorescences with a diameter of up to 25 cm.

Hydrangea paniculata - varieties, photos

Paniculate hydrangea differs from tree hydrangea in inflorescences, which consist of large sterile and small fertile flowers, and grow up to 20-25 cm in length. During flowering they can change color. For the first days, the flower petals are white, after a while they acquire a pink tint, and by the end of flowering they turn green. The large leaves of paniculate species are ovoid or elliptical in shape. They are heavily pubescent below and slightly pubescent above.

Garden varieties bloom from June to July and bloom for a long time. Among them are:

Features of growing garden hydrangea

Those who decide to grow hydrangea in their garden plot need to observe certain rules its planting, placement and care. It should be remembered that only tree-like and paniculate hydrangeas in Siberia.

Planting and care

The plant loves well-lit places with slight shading. In sunny areas, hydrangeas grow well and bloom quickly, but due to excessive heat they suffer from drying out of the soil and lose their turgor. Small inflorescences form in full shade.

The soil for planting shrubs must be acidic. Plant on alkaline soil will suffer from chlorosis and bloom poorly. Neutral soil for hydrangea is unacceptable.

Hydrangeas planted on nutritious loams will take root well and grow. Therefore, during planting, it is recommended to add clay to the bottom of the hole.

Hydrangea is a moisture-loving plant, however, in areas with high levels groundwater It is not recommended to plant it. In addition, the wintering of the shrub directly depends on the moisture intake of the plant roots. The less moisture they accumulate in the fall, the better plant will overwinter. That is why in the fall the soil around the bushes must be partially covered from precipitation.

Landing garden hydrangea produced in spring in pits approx. the dimensions of which should be 50x50x70 cm. The plant is planted after the last frost has passed.

Store-bought plants with a closed root system can be planted until the end of summer, preparing deeper and wider holes for them. After planting, the bushes are well watered, and the soil around them is covered 6 cm with sawdust or peat mulch.

The distance between plants should be from one to one and a half meters. If the group planting was conceived as a “living” hedge, then the bushes are planted more densely.

Watering and feeding

During the season in open ground The bushes are watered once a week. In hot months, the frequency of watering increases to 2 times a week.

Caring for hydrangea includes mandatory feeding, which are produced twice a year:

1. In May or June, during the budding period, the plant is fed with nitrogen fertilizers.
2. In summer, the bushes need potassium, which is added according to the instructions.

It is better not to apply ash under hydrangea bushes, as it reduces the acidity of the soil.

When caring for hydrangeas, you need to be especially careful when pruning the bush. Pruning is carried out every spring. Some gardeners cut the bushes very short, as a result of which the most flower buds. You can't do this. It is recommended to approach each bush individually.

First of all, the frozen parts of the shoots are cut out from the plant. If after this there are enough powerful shoots left, then last year’s branches can be cut back to the upper branch. If there is a small number of annual shoots, only inflorescences are removed from faded branches.

Shoots that are too old and thicken the bush are completely cut out. It is not recommended to cut out annual shoots at all. It is worth noting that inflorescences for bouquets can be cut throughout the entire period until autumn.

What can I do to make hydrangea change color?

Experienced flower growers know that by feeding bushes with pink inflorescences with certain fertilizers, the result can be a plant blooming blue or blue flowers . To do this, starting in September, the following is added to the soil once every two weeks:

• aluminum alum solution (2 pieces per 1 liter of water);
• iron or aluminum sulfate (20-50 g).

If fertilizers are applied irregularly, both blue and pink inflorescences will begin to form on the bush.

Preparing hydrangea for winter

Unfortunately, without shelter in the Urals and Siberia, hydrangea will not be able to survive the winter. Therefore, caring for it in regions with cold winters includes preparing the bushes for wintering.

Before covering the plants, it is necessary to feed them with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers and remove all leaves from them, leaving only the top ones. This will help speed up the process of lignification of the shoots.

Paniculate and tree hydrangea, grown in the southern regions, can be simply hill up high or cover with peat. For regions with unpredictable and cold winters, you can choose one of the following methods:

When growing hydrangea, you should know that every year it winter hardiness increases. Therefore, in some regions, over time, covering bushes for the winter can be abandoned. But young plants must be covered.

Diseases and pests of garden hydrangea

The plant is resistant to diseases and pests, however, may be affected:

The most beautiful hydrangea plant is excellent suitable for singles and group plantings , goes well with low conifers and looks great against the background of stones. At correct landing and caring for it, you can admire the magnificent blooms and be proud of your flower garden all summer until autumn.

garden hydrangea

Blue hydrangea is a beautiful flowering garden shrub. It looks great in landscape compositions and is suitable for decorating hedges, gazebos, and paths. Currently, many varieties have been bred that can easily withstand winter and delight with their flowering for many years. A separate type"blue hydrangea" does not exist. The plant received this name for the shade of its flowers. Varieties of large-leaved hydrangea are mainly covered with blue and blue inflorescences. There are two- and three-color species that change their shade throughout the season. Today we will talk about planting and caring for blue hydrangea.

Hydrangea varieties with blue inflorescences

Typically this is large leaf hydrangeas. They are distinguished by rounded inflorescences, long and abundant flowering. Initially, flower growers saw large-leaved hydrangeas in potted varieties. Such crops were not suitable for growing in open ground. They were simply freezing. And only much later were they withdrawn frost-resistant varieties. Which ones have blue flowers?

1. Hydrangea "Mini Penny". Remontant variety. Blooms on the shoots of the current year. It has lush green foliage and pale blue flowers collected in spherical inflorescences.
2. "Ramars". A small compact bush. Refers to multi-colored varieties. Some species become covered with purple or purple flowers. Others are striking bright blue and white.
3. "Freedom". Two-color variety. At the beginning of flowering, flowers appear against a background of rich greenery. pink flowers. Then their center turns blue and the edges turn white.
4. "Compeito." A hybrid variety with large lilac-blue flowers, the center of which is white.
5. "Perfection". Rose-like flowers are pink at first. Then the hue changes to blue.
6. "Hopcorn Blue." A low bush up to sixty to eighty centimeters with tulip-like blue flowers. Blooms on shoots of the second year.
7. "Jomari." Compact bush with blue double flowers. It also blooms on branches of the second year.

When to plant blue hydrangea

The best time to plant hydrangeas is spring, when the ground thaws and the buds have not yet bloomed, and autumn - in September. When choosing a place for an ornamental foliage plant, keep in mind that it is better to plant hydrangea in the shade or partial shade, since bright sun causes slow growth, as a result of which the inflorescences become smaller.

Preparing the soil for planting blue hydrangea

The soil for hydrangea should be well-drained and moist, consist of a balanced mixture of humus, leaf soil, peat chips, river sand(2:2:1:1). Regardless of the type and variety of hydrangea, remember that lime in the soil negatively affects development. The soil should have a Ph level of approximately 5.0. Alkaline soil leads to chlorosis (yellowing of leaves). When a bush grows on alkaline soil, there is often a lack of iron and magnesium, which is manifested by light and pale color of the leaves. Therefore, acidify the soil or treat the bush with iron chelate. In past centuries, gardeners buried objects made of iron (nails, a jar, a horseshoe). When planting, prepare a special balanced soil mixture with fertilizers.

Planting blue hydrangea in open ground

The empty planting hole must be thoroughly flushed with water. The surrounding soil should be saturated with moisture. To do this, pour at least 3 buckets of water into the hole. After a day, you can start planting the plant. For planting, mix the amount of soil substrate required to fill the hole. Dry mineral fertilizers are added to the specified soil composition (50 g of fertilizers per plant) and mixed thoroughly. You can also use specialized fertilizers for hydrangeas. The planting hole is filled with prepared soil substrate, compacting it slightly. In the center, make a hole the size of an earthen ball on the roots of the seedling. The bush is placed in a hole, the roots are buried in soil. The soil around the bush is compacted by hand. If, after compaction, the planting hole is not filled enough, add substrate on top. After planting, the blue hydrangea is watered well so that the entire volume of soil in the hole is saturated with moisture. Following this, the soil is covered with a layer of mulch. It contains crushed bark or sawdust. deciduous trees. Mulching the soil is necessary to retain moisture in the soil.

When planting several hydrangea bushes, the distance between them should be at least 1 m. This is necessary so that the bushes, as they grow, do not shade each other. If you want to plant hydrangea in a row, you can dig a trench 90-110 cm wide. If you want to achieve more early flowering, then when planting, dig holes closer to each other (70-80 cm), and after 2-3 years, thin out the bushes if necessary. Planting pit Depth - 36-45, width - 51-65 cm. The roots grow mainly in breadth, extending much further than the crown. Planting depth The root collar should be located at soil level, a maximum of 2-3 cm lower, otherwise the flower will develop poorly. Now that you know how to plant hydrangea correctly, you need to care for the plant in a timely manner.

Blue hydrangea care

Caring for hydrangea consists of weeding and loosening the soil around it, organizing a timely and correct watering regime. In addition, to prevent rapid evaporation of moisture, it is recommended to mulch the bush at the beginning of summer with peat or sawdust.

In the fall, plants are fed with complex fertilizers, and in the spring with urea (2 tablespoons per adult bush, diluted in 2 buckets of water and watered). This allows them to develop and form large panicles.

During the growing season, the plant can be fertilized with slurry, but if you overdo it with organic fertilizers, the branches of the bush may break off under the weight of the inflorescences.

Pruning blue hydrangea

It is important to form the bush correctly. Gardeners do not like to prune branches, but in the case of paniculata hydrangea, without heavy pruning, you may not see abundant flowering.

Trimming rules:

1. In autumn, all inflorescences are cut off.
2. In the spring, all weak and frozen branches growing inside the bush are cut out into a ring.
3. In the spring, the annual growth is shortened, leaving no more than five pairs of buds on each.

This pruning helps the bush bloom more luxuriantly every year. What does “abundant flowering” mean in the case of paniculata hydrangea? Five year old specimen good care will please the owner with several dozen panicles, and a twelve-year-old with several hundred! The plant lives in the garden for 50 years or more. A specimen older than 20 years can be rejuvenated by cutting the bush to a stump. But even such pruning will not prevent the plant from blooming in the same year.

Protecting blue hydrangea from pests

Blue hydrangea is affected only by aphids and red spider mite. These pests feed on plant sap and are able to reproduce in large quantities. Very often, the lack of control against them leads to the death of the plant.

• Leaf aphids accumulate on the tips of shoots and petioles of the youngest leaves. Gradually multiplying, it sucks out the sap of the plant, which leads to curling and drying of the tops of the shoots. Only commercial insecticidal preparations for killing aphids can help in the fight against them.
• Spider mites are classified as harmful arachnids. Ticks are very small and often invisible to the naked eye. You can only notice the web on the youngest leaves of the plant. To combat this dangerous pest, there are drugs - acaricides and insecto-acaricides that destroy harmful arachnids.

How to grow blue hydrangea

Hydrangeas will produce blue flowers (not pink) if grown in acidic soil. Sometimes hydrangeas can change color over time if the acidity level of the soil changes. Therefore, if you want to constantly have blue flowers, you will need to monitor the pH of the soil and take measures to maintain its acidity. This is quite easy to do - just skip to Step 1 first.

Steps

Part 1

Know that hydrangeas will produce blue flowers in acidic soil, while pink flowers will appear on hydrangeas in alkaline soil. Hydrangeas can be called unique garden plants precisely because of their ability to change the color of flowers in accordance with the pH of the soil. This means that the color of the hydrangea flowers in your garden will depend on whether the soil is acidic or alkaline.

• The scientific reason for this phenomenon is that the amount of aluminum available to plants depends on the acidity level of the soil (also known as pH). Acidic soils have high aluminum content, which causes blue flowers to form.
• Alkaline soil is the reason why hydrangeas produce pink flowers; in acidic soil the same plant will have blue flowers. The exception to this rule is white or green hydrangeas, whose flowers have only one color. Therefore, you cannot force a white hydrangea to produce pink or blue flowers.

1. Check the acidity (pH) of your soil. To find out whether the soil in your garden is alkaline or acidic, determine the pH value. This will help you know how likely your hydrangea is to produce blue flowers.

   • If the soil pH is below 5.5, your hydrangeas will bloom bright blue flowers.
   • If the pH is between 5.5 and 6.5, the flowers will have a fantastic purple color.
   • If the pH is above 6.5, the flowers will be pink.

2. To determine whether your soil is acidic or alkaline, use white vinegar. For this you need distilled white vinegar. Take a handful of soil, pour vinegar on top and wait for the reaction.

   Determine soil pH using the scientific method. If you want to know exact value pH level of your soil, you can check it using a set of test instruments designed for this purpose. Such kits are widely available at garden centers or online stores. When using them, follow the instructions on the package.

   • Alternatively, you can take a sample of your soil to your local garden center, who will test the acidity (pH) of your soil.

   Part 2

   How to make soil more acidic

   1. Spray the soil with elemental sulfur. To maintain the blue color of your hydrangea flowers, spray the soil around the bush with elemental sulfur to lower the pH below 5.5. The amount of elemental sulfur required will vary depending on the type of soil and how much the pH needs to be adjusted.

      • To lower the pH by one unit in loam or silty clay soils, apply ¾ pound of elemental sulfur per 25 square feet. In other words, it takes ¾ pound to lower the pH from 6 to 5. On sandy or sandy loam soil, it takes less than ¼ pound of elemental sulfur to lower the pH by one.
      • Start spraying the soil with elemental sulfur about 2 feet from the outer edge of the bush's canopy. Scatter the sulfur evenly over the soil approximately 4 to 6 inches away from the hydrangea shoots. This is the area where most of the growing roots are located and take up water and nutrients.
      • Using a small hand rake, stir the elemental sulfur into upper layer soil (1 to 2 inches), then water the area thoroughly to allow the sulfur to soak into the soil. The elemental sulfur will need to be reused from time to time to ensure the flowers retain their blue color.

   2. Use acidic compost and aluminum sulfate powder. If you are planting hydrangeas in a garden with alkaline soil and want blue flowers, you will need to add a sufficient amount of acidic compost and aluminum sulfate to the soil at planting and apply these substances regularly throughout the life of the plant.

      Apply a fertilizer low in phosphorus and high in potassium. All hydrangeas benefit from fertilizer. To get or maintain blue hydrangea flowers, use a low-phosphorus, high-potassium fertilizer.

      Use organic matter to increase soil acidity. If you are keeping your garden chemical-free, use organic matter such as grass clippings, fruit and vegetable scraps, or used coffee grounds. Gradually the soil will become more acidic.

      Water hydrangeas with rainwater. Try to use for watering hydrangeas rainwater, not tap water. If you use "solid" tap water for blue hydrangeas, it will neutralize the acidity of the soil and the flowers will gradually turn pink. You can learn how to collect rainwater from this article.