Saturday, May 15, 2010

Hydrangeas in Bloom (endless summer and brestenburg)

Endless Summer....


 

 May weather has been a roller coaster so far--just this past week we had daytime temperatures in the 50s AND the high-80s.  Unfortunately we also had lots of cold evenings, which makes me worry for my tomato plants.  But, today's Garden Bloggers Bloom Day post is about what's blooming in my garden--hydrangeas, my favorite flower!

The pictures above are of the Endless Summer hydrangeas I planted last summer. I was a little worried for my plants after DC got hit with three blizzards this year, plus some other minor snow storms, and they were buried in 4 feet of snow. I have two Endless Summer bushes, and they're growing bigger and stronger compared to last season, despite freezing to death three months ago. I'd say they're pretty hardy!

We also have hydrangeas of the Brestenburg variety:


I actually prefer blue/purple hydrangeas to pink ones, and I haven't had luck trying to get the Endless Summers to turn blue. I have added special fertilizer to make the soil more acidic (the same kind I use for the blueberries, actually), but it just isn't taking. I don't want to add too much. I hope that by having the Brestenburgs in a container I'll be able to manipulate the soil better than in the ground.

Finally, I planted this heuchera last year, and it too is doing well this season despite having been flattened by the snow. Just last week I moved it to a bigger container, and now it's growing buds!
Happy Bloom Day!

4 comments:

  1. Wow! Hydrangeas blooming already. You must be south of me. Mine have very tight buds. Good luck with your garden this year.

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  2. Isn't nice that they're coming out with more and more hydrangeas that bloom on new wood! I have had Nikko Blue for years (blooms on old wood only) and it has never blossomed... even in mild winters like this has been. Endless summer and its siblings are a blessing indeed... Larry

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  3. Thanks for the comments, Marcia and Larry! My hydrangeas hadn't been doing much until this last week when the blooms suddenly decided to explode. And I am so glad there are so many varieties that are easy to grow. As a garden newbie, they make you feel like you can't really mess them up. It's just tricky trying to get the soil pH right so I can that rich blue color I love so much.

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  4. Your hydrangeas are too' cute! It's a very good Idea to purchase plants that are easy for newbies to grow! I'm trying to keep that in mind during my learning process as a newbie gardener... I forgot to come by and check you out on GBBD..Happy belated GBBD!

    Vetsy..

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