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Putting hydrangeas in shrub borders

sujiwan_gw 6b MD/PA

17 years ago

If I currently have only sunny areas to plant in, but I want to incorporate hydrangeas, what could I plant concurrently to protect hydrangeas from getting too much sun? For example, plant a larger growing shrub behind to block sun from the west? Or do hydrangeas require more water than most other border shrubs would be happy with?

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Comments (7)

silvergold
17 years ago
Hi there. It really depends on the type of hydrangea. Some (arborescens, paniculata) grow just fine in full sun. I have hydrangeas planted in mixed beds and borders throughout. Regarding water, I don't find them any more thirsty than other plants.

I have hydrangea paniculata planted around my deck area (right).
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Peeking between paniculata from my deck to Carefree Beauty Roses.
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Also have several in a long border. This is Samantha in front (past it's prime), with paniculata Limelight and Viburnum tribolum. I love the red berries of the viburnum with all the greenish blooms.
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In a full sun border - a dwarf blue spruce, paniculata grandiflora, daylily (Canadian Border Patrol?), the new Sunrise Coneflower, and Russian Sage.
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Another view around my deck with Becky Daisy:
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ego45
17 years ago
Protecting hydrangeas from the westerly sun is a good idea.
Paniculatas (large and later blooming hydrangeas) could take full sun and at the same time will provide shade for the smaller and earlier blooming macrophillas and serratas.
Hydrangeas wouldn't mind to have an extra water, especially in a middle of the summer, but they are not a swamp plants and there shouldn't be big cultural differences between them and other 'normal' plants.
I grow them with azaleas/rhododendrons, hollies, junipers, leucothoe, forsythias, cherry laurel, viburnums, conifers etc etc. As you can see all this a pretty wide spectrum of water preferences, but hydrangeas are happy in every location for as long as they well watered and established.

Silvergold, some great combos you have there.
I especially like V. trilobum + Limelight combo.
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I agree with Dingo about sun exposure. H. arborescens doesn't much like full or western sun, though it wants some sun to bloom really well, so it should be fine in the exposure you described above. H. paniculata in my garden is fine in full day sun, though farther south it benefits from some shade, but with the bright shade involved here, it still should bloom and grow well with morning sun. I have a friend with Bobos in part shade, part sun and they look happy. One difference between the two is that H. arborscens suckers some, so for my Annabelle, I have to remove suckers once or twice a year (ususally fall and then in spring for the ones I missed) if I don't want it to overtake the surrounding shrubs. I don't know if all H. arborescens are quite as vigorous as Annabelle. H. paniculata doesn't sucker so in my garden is less work. I had an injured knee that made much garden work difficult to impossible for about three years, and here's my Annabelle, unchecked for all that time, but if kept maintained it is a lovely plant.(windowsill sits at 4' to give you height.) I would look at the summer color and fall color of various H. paniculatas and H. arborescens in your size range along with the shape and density of the flower heads and how upright the branches are. Only you can decide which appeals to you the most. They should all bloom well for you.
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yellowgirl
17 years ago
Silvergold....very lovely garden. Thanks for sharing....yg
hayseedman
17 years ago
Thanks, Silvergold.

Always a pleasure to see what you're doing.

Hay.
ostrich
17 years ago
Silvergold, you have an AMAZING garden with so many lovely shrubs and perennials! BEAUTIFUL!!!
silvergold
17 years ago
Thanks everyone! I'm really enjoying my hydraneas this year - nice to have blooms when so many other flowers are resting.
tabassam
17 years ago
Silvergold is right about the type of hyrandea. I thought my dad was crazy when he planted several Alice hydrangeas in full Florida sun. I predicted they would be toast by August (last yr), boy was I wrong. They are growing like weeds- huge, gorgeus bark, flowers and no supplemental rain. I'm still shocked. I have a Annabelle who sulks and loses leaves if not given daily moisture.

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