Oh Ostrich ... I do have room or can make one - 7gal ... not bad for 60. huh? ... but doesn't Limelight droop with weight of blooms? I wonder how it'll look fully blossomed ... a lovely umbrella, do you think? Hmmmmm!!!

I'm thinking of L'lite to sandwich QF with LL on the other side for '09. My nursery-guy has 3 left (not trees). I have time ... have to dig up 2 Lady Duff Peonies in Sept for this plan.

Did you get yourself in trouble, out at the nursery?!!! LOL - if you did, have fun with your find!!!

Hi ditas!

Yes, I don't think that $60 is bad either for such a lovely tree in a 7 gallon pot. Now, I do believe that this store (it's a local chain) has a "Hydrangea Festival" in the middle of July, where they will take further discounts on all hydrangeas during those 3 days. I think that the price will then go to $40 for those 3 days!!! Wouldn't that just be so very tempting!? Sigh...

Anyway, ditas, regarding your QF and LL, are you sure you want another paniculata there? I wonder if it would look nice with another shrub there, esp. something with dark foliage or very different leaf texture? Have you thought about that?

I agree with ostrich, three paniculatas (even the three distinctly different one) will not look good together. Even two together, not separated by another, differently textured/colored plant is not the way to display H.p. properly, IMO, unless you want to create hedge, of course.
That said I have to admit that I do have 3 paniculatas together, but...
-it's a very back of multilayered shrub border,
-it's a very rocky soil and I'm not able to plant exactly where I want to, but rather where I'm able to dig a hole,
-even there they are not planted in a straight line.

Schematically it looks like this:

---------QF----------- (Quick Fire)
---PG----Az-----PG---- (PG + Azalea)
ES----Az-----Az----ES (Endl.Sum + Azaleas)
---BB----ES-----BB--- (Endl.Sum + Bl.Bride)
-(different astilbes and hostas)-
-(different astilbes and hostas)-

This part of the 50' long border has a depth between 9 to 14' in different places and occupies about 20'+ of the total width.

Ooooh, I want one! I have six limelights, but a tree form would be gorgeous. Just to let you know ostrich, they do very well in containers!

What is the tree form? Did they just prune all the limbs off the bottom? That's what it looks like to me!

Ostrich & George - many thanks for your input. Perhaps I should take a photo of (sunny half) top of our retaining wall to show you what IÂm trying to do - The existing, hedge-like, row of Lady A Duff Peonies, as breathtakingly, beautiful the blooms are, last only at the most 10 days - the foliage ... not exactly impressive!

The E facing 40Â strip has a about 7-8ft depth. the 7' end to the fence is dappled/shaded by grown trees - there I planted 2 Big Smile H s & doing very well. At the other end is where I planted LL 5' off the steps, followed by QF. Since discovering these longer-blooming bushes, I thought, perhaps a row of paniculatas (similar height/width & blooms that will last 'til 1st frost) might prove interesting. Right now I have a row of mums for fall colors after peonies are pruned to the ground. Those can easily be dug up ... thinking to replace with Lavender &/or 'Oso Easy' little mounds of Roses.

Here is a link that might be useful: Click here to see retaining wall top

Hi ditas!

I am not any expert in landscape design, but in my humble opinion, I think that it would look the best with either a row of the same paniculatas for that impact that only mass planting can give you, or to have different bushes altogether to give you the different colors, textures and shapes that the variety would give you. I think that since you have a LL and a QF already, how about separating them with a completely different shrub that would give you a different color (e.g. something with burgundy foliage) and texture, so that it will really show off these beautiful paniculatas that you have? It's just a thought.

Thanks for sharing the photos with us!

Thank you for your thoughts - very well taken too, honestly! :-) I originally thought to do an all LL at first, then I wanted to find AB so badly as a neighbor for LL, but got caught in the color lures of QF & her earlier bloom time (just a mo. after Peonies!). So I thought perhaps, to alternate LL & QF ... even AB as the 3rd then prune them to similar size ... not convinced, I stopped! I finally found AB, as you might have read - posted in May ... decided to plant her elsewhere to take advantage of her potential stature. So now back to square 1!

I have several foundation beds & patches/islands with textures, colors & staggered bloom time . I liken my piece of soil (my 2nd-childhood/playground, really! LOL) to a grandma's quilt ... not an award-winning quilt, but a comfy, soft - even perhaps, sloppily-stitched-together utility quilt, full of warm memories!!!

The part/shade, other half (separated by steps) of the retaining wall top came out wonderfully with different plants (3 are Hs) punctuated by my grotto at the N end! The wall that collapsed after our '100-yr-flood of '93' was rebuilt - now Baltic Ivy covers it well. I'm hoping that the sunny half, will also be completely covered by H petiolaris in a few years.

I'm not rushing with this hedge-like row of paniculatas, but will dig up 2-3 Peonies & prep a hole. Would love to read others' thoughts & ideas too!

MTIA!!! <:->

I just bought a limelight hydrangea tree. Does anyone here have one? Do I need to buy or make an umbrella support system for the branches when it blooms?

Some stakes might be useful on windy days. Plan on keeping them for a while and choose a location where windy events rarely occur or else you will end up finding the tree down in a few years and have to stake it again.

Tina Buell, where did you purchase your hydrangea tree? I've been searching for one.

I've purchased limelight, phantom, and fire and ice hydrangea trees from Green Acres