Different Types of Hydrangea Bushes: Discover Amazing Types For Sun & Shade

What are the different types of hydrangea bushes, as well as how to identify yours when there are many different varieties of hydrangea out there?

Hydrangeas are a popular type of flowering bush grown in North America as well as other places around the world.

You're reading: Different Types of Hydrangea Bushes: Discover Amazing Types For Sun & Shade

Their flowers come in different colors, and some varieties of hydrangeas can even have their flower color changed! They are known for preferring the shade, but some can grow in direct sun. Often, they are grown near taller trees that provide shade while adding beauty to an outdoor space.

How Many Types of Hydrangea Bushes Are There?

Of the 49 known species of hydrangeas, 6 types are cultivated in North America. They are native to the Americas as well as eastern Asia. Each hydrangea variety has its own flower type, bush size, and method of care.

Different varieties of Hydrangeas. From left to right: Hydrangea Macrophylla – Serrata – Paniculata

1. Hydrangea macrophylla (Bigleaf): Divided into mopheads and lacecaps. Flowers range from blue to pink, depending on soil pH.
2. Hydrangea paniculata (Panicle): Grows best in full sun and can tolerate more cold than others. Flowers are conical-shaped and are white, green, pink, or red.
3. Hydrangea quercifola (Oakleaf): Named Oakleaf since the leaves are shaped the same as oaks. Flower colors are white and pink.
4. Hydrangea arborescens (Smooth): Named smooth for the roundness of the flower balls. Colors are white and pink.
5. Hydrangea serrata (Mountain): Hardier than Bigleafs, but same flower color range.
6. Hydrangea petiolaris (Climbing): This variety climbs as a vine. It blooms white.

Different Colors of Hydrangeas

Different colors of hydrangeas – Large hydrangea bush

The flowers of some hydrangea varieties can be changed color by changing the pH of the soil. These varieties are serrata and some macrophyllas (Mopoheads and Lacecaps). Their flowers are good indicators of the pH level of the soil without tinkering from the gardener.

• Acidic soil, with a pH of about 5.5, produces hydrangeas with blue flowers.
• Neutral soil produces purple to pink flowers. The more alkaline the soil is, the closer the flower color approaches a red hue.

See the following article about How to prune hydrangeas in spring, summer, fall, and winter.

Different Types of Hydrangeas for Shade

Oakleafs are named, as you may suspect, by the shapes of their leaves, which strongly resemble the leaves of oak trees. Their flowers are oblong-shaped rather than round and grow on old wood.

Oakleaf flowers bloom white from spring to summer, but in the fall, they undergo a shift from orange to red to mahogany, and they are the only hydrangea species that have this blooming pattern.

Read more : Snake Plant Easy Guide 101: How To Grow And Care For Sansevieria

One variety of Oakleaf is the Tara hydrangea.

It has all the characteristics common among Oakleafs, but it does exceptionally well in the shade and has higher tolerance to dry periods than other hydrangeas. It is often planted in rows to create large hydrangea bushes which act as wind breaks.

Pee Wee is a variety of Oakleaf which is known for its compact size – it matures at 3 to 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide. It’s an oddity because it has conical blooms like the panicle species.

Blooms appear early in summer and bloom for around 6 to 8 weeks. The flowers start out white and gradually shift towards pink, before turning brown at the end of their blooming period. The leaves also change color as the summer progresses, changing from deep green to bronze or maroon.

Ruby Slippers is another miniature which is a cross between a Pee Wee and a Snow Queen, growing 3 to 4 feet tall and about 4 feet wide.

Their unique characteristic is their flower cluster, which is conical like the Pee Wee but has a deep red color that gives it the appearance of a red shoe, hence the name. The stem bark remains brown through the winter which gives it a nice appearance.

Munchkins are even smaller than the Pee Wee, reaching a height of 3 feet maximum. The sepals are speckled around the main cluster, resembling many small butterflies all sitting on the flower.

Mountain hydrangeas look similar to the Bigleafs, but with smaller leaves and flowers, though they are also old-wood bloomers.

The blooms are plentiful and they sometimes change colors multiple times throughout the warm season, which is a sensation that you don’t get from many plants!

An interesting variety of mountain hydrangeas is the Bluebird, native to Japan and Korea.

Read more : Polka Dot Begonia Dry Leaves: 4 Issues To Look Out For

The flower heads have white sepals that surround a cluster of blue florets. These florets do change color with a change in the soil pH – acidic soil produces blue flowers and more alkaline soil produces pink ones.

The leaves are a deep, dark green that change to red during the fall. It’s a compact plant, growing up to 4 feet tall and wide.

As the name suggests, this species of hydrangea climbs trees and buildings as a vine. You could consider it a giant hydrangea because it can grow up to 50 feet tall!

On the vines are little suckers called holdfasts, which allow the plant to climb walls without the use of a trellis. It’s known for how slowly it grows at the beginning, taking 3 to 5 years to produce its first flowers. Its flowers are white and they bloom during the spring and summer on old wood.

A notable climbing variety is the Silver Lining, which has silver-green variegated leaves. It does not like full shade or full sun, but rather something in the middle. Like other climbing varieties, it takes up a 5 foot diameter and is often planted as a privacy wall.

• Macrophyllas are an old-wood blooming type and are so-called because of their large leaves. They are divided into two categories: mophead and lacecap. Mopheads have ball-shaped clusters of flowers, whereas lacecaps have flat flower heads with groups of sepals surrounding the center cluster. They are one of the hydrangea types whose flower color is dependent on the soil pH.
• The Blaumeise is one of the favorite blue hydrangea varieties among gardeners. Its flowers can be up to 9 inches across and they bloom from early to late summer. It prefers lightly shaded conditions and consistently moist soil. It can be planted in rows as a bush, or individually in pots.
• Bloomstruck is a patented member of the Endless Summer family which blooms all summer long with flower colors dependent on the soil pH. It’s a mophead type, with rounded flower heads 5 inches in diameter. It’s unique because it blooms both on old and new growth.

Types of Hydrangeas for Sun

Panicle hydrangeas have a unique flower shape, which is conical rather than flat or ball-shaped. They are also known for being the most heat and cold-resistant species! They love the full sun and can be grown almost anywhere in North America. Their blooms grow on new wood.

• Limelight hydrangeas are a type of Panicle that have a distinctive appearance – their flower heads are a lime shade of light green sitting atop a bush of deep green leaves. Flowers bloom from July to September and can change from lime green to a creamy white to burgundy. Like many hydrangeas, it forms a bush roughly as wide as it is tall, reaching 6 to 8 feet in height and width.
• Moondance is a panicle that blooms throughout the summer and fall with creamy white heads, which keep their color consistently throughout the blooming season. It’s heat tolerant and loves the sun.
• Quick Fire has flowers which are a mix of gold and burgundy, giving them the appearance of hot embers. They start out white in early July and work their way towards pink as the season progresses. They grow 6 to 8 feet tall normally, but there is a dwarf variety known as Little Quick Fire for those with space constraints or who want to grow a potted hydrangea.

Smooth hydrangeas are so-called for the shape of the flowers, which appear smooth like a ball. It does well in full sun as long as it has consistent moisture. It’s native to the eastern United States, but it can also survive in other regions, since it’s cold hardy. It’s a new-wood blooming variety.

Lime Rickey is a variety of smooth hydrangea that has jade-green blooms which eventually fade to white as the summer progresses. A full-sized bush grows up to 4 to 5 feet tall, and they are often planted in rows to create a barrier on gardens and other public spaces. It requires little pruning, but any pruning that you want to do has to be done in late winter or early spring.

What Kind of Hydrangea Do I Have? How to Identify Different Types of Hydrangea

The six main types of hydrangeas cultivated in North America have distinctive characteristics that will help you identify which species you are seeing.

• Hydrangea macrophylla (Bigleaf): Large leaves are the distinctive characteristic of this species, growing up to 6 inches long with pointed tips at both ends. Bigleafs come in two types: Mopheads and Lacecaps. Mopheads have large spherical blooms, and Lacecaps have a flat flower cluster with groups of sepals surrounding it. The bushes are tall, reaching a height of 4 to 6 feet.
• Hydrangea paniculata (Panicle): Panicle bushes grow from 8 to 12 feet tall, which is much larger than most other varieties. Their blooms are conical rather than flat or spherical.
• Hydrangea quercifola (Oakleaf): As the name suggests, oakleaf hydrangeas have leaves which resemble those of an oak tree. Their bushes grow fairly large, from 6 to 8 feet tall. Their blooms are similar in shape to those of panicles, being oblong in shape.
• Hydrangea arborescens (Smooth): Smooth hydrangeas have ball-shaped blooms which are densely-packed, giving them a smooth-ball appearance. Their blooms are similar in shape to those of the mopheads, but larger.
• Hydrangea serrata (Mountain): Mountain hydrangeas look like miniature bigleaf lacecaps, growing from 2 to 4 feet tall. In fact, they can be confused for a young lacecap.
• Hydrangea petiolaris (Climbing): This species is the easiest on the list to identify. It’s a vining plant, growing up the sides of trees and buildings and reaching a height of 50 feet!

Different Types of Hydrangea Bushes: Recap

In this article, we covered the 6 different types of hydrangea bushes most commonly cultivated. There are types grown for sun and others for shade. The flowers have a range of different colors depending on the variety. There are some varieties that grow into large bushes and others that are dwarf varieties for growing in pots. We also covered some tips on how to identify your hydrangeas by species. I hope you found this content helpful and I wish you the best with your gardening!

Source: https://thelittle.garden
Category: Houseplants