I sprayed once with Sevin on larger plants with no blooms. Three days later, it rained and rendered it useless and no way was I going through that again for at least a week anyway. So I bought 3 24 oz Dual Action Bayer Rose and Flower Insect Killer (think that's what the above poster was referring to) knowing that both products kill bees (observed it myself last year with the Bayer, swore I'd never use it again but relented when I decided I never see bees on my nonflowering plants and would only use it on those). I don't know if hydrangeas attract bees or not; most flowering plants do. If you can keep the spray off the blooms, it should be ok. But if you spray the flowers, and hydrangeas bloom longer than roses, the residual action for an indefinite period and even after a rain will disorient and incapacitate bees, probably fatal, observed it myself days later. When I used it in desperation last year, it didn't kill the beetles right away, they take off, and you have to trust it'll drop 'em at some point. Sevin takes about 1/2 hour and you need to use at least 2 oz per gallon. Since I did it in the evening, I don't know if it killed any, but that's what one nursery uses. Last year I put up traps but my yard is too small and just made the invasion much worse (got hundreds of them plus many get away anyway). They have to hit the baffles hard to drop in the bags. No more traps unless all the neighbors do same. Ain't gonna happen. This year I still have to go around with my soapy water because naturally if they can't eat a rose bloom, they'll go for just about anything or sit on anything waiting for a mate, got one sitting on a hosta leaf this afternoon but normally they don't bother those, daylilies or geraniums, few other things. I'm finding them in my potted plumbago, lobelia, oriental lilies, daisies, phlox, rose leaves, pussywillow, echinacea, monarda, not that many but gotta get them one way or another. Every female you don't kill means 40-60 beetle larvae for the following year. They swarm the most on hot, sunny days between 11 and 3. So when I go out at 5 or 6, I don't find very many, same early morning. Rainy days give you a break, and they didn't like the unseasonable, overcast-sky, low temps and wind today but still found some. I'm also going to try to get Grubex down in the window for that, July 15-August 15, but the mfr hot line tells me it has to be watered in fairly quickly or the sun will break it down rendering it ineffective. Ag ext people said to apply just before a rain. Fine. Half the time our weather forecasts are wrong. Using the hose (don't have a sprinkler, may get one and hose won't reach everywhere), I don't know how much manual "watering down" I might have to do so I'm going to try to do it in the worst places first and try to cover it all B4 Aug 15. Good luck. They can do a lot of damage in a matter of hours, starting at the top and working down, but you can never be sure. They are here for the duration, and it takes cooperation of the whole community to make a significant difference. Ain't gonna happen here.

I dunno what they were smoking but it ain't true!! A tree form hydrangea is simply one that has been trained to a single, rather vertical trunk with lower side branching removed. They are not grafted. So if a regular 'Limelight' can be expected to grow to 6-8', a tree form will not get significantly larger. And since it is a form of paniculata, it can be hard pruned if you desire. Pee Gee hydrangeas (H. paniculata 'Grandiflora') can exceed this size and one often finds older, well-established tree forms that reach upto 15' but again, these respond readily to pruning to keep size in check.

You have a good point Kate, however it's all organic and I see it as protective, not overkill. The main reason I purchased was for the brown spot that one of the hydrangeas had. I haven't seen it harm any of the good insects as bees are buzzing around them . I think it's good to have a product that takes care of any of the "issues" we may encounter with the hydrangeas, but I'm just a newbie so maybe some one with more experience with this product can give more information. /forums/zone.html">Zone (optional): Subject of Posting: Message: Optional Link URL:    Name of the Link: Information about Posting You must be logged in to post a message. Once you are logged in, a posting window will appear at the bottom of the messages. If you are not a member, please register for an account. Please review our Rules of Play before posting. Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review your post, make changes and upload photos. After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it. Before posting copyrighted material, please read about Copyright and Fair Use. We have a strict no-advertising policy! If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum. If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help. Learn more about in-text links on this page here Return to the Hydrangea Forum Most Recent Posts Bought a Dell PC from Costco â¢Â by ellie45 windrow â¢Â by Theodorus Mysterious Stains on White Clothing LG front load â¢Â by sparky823 Older Daylilies (1990 or Earlier) â¢Â by billi_goats_gruff Need help designing Courtyard â¢Â by Yardvaark Pulling water from creek for irrigation. â¢Â by mctabish1 Railroad ties â¢Â by bozarth My adenium blooming under lights. â¢Â by Christine20 Is this Millipedes in my houseplant soil? â¢Â by ronalawn82 Tree Fuschia at Palais Royales de Laeken, Brussel, Belgium â¢Â by sandyslopes Explore GardenWeb Ann's Cream Cheese Babka Perfect for Holiday Baking Feeding Hummingbirds Will...

Glad you won the day, ejr. I spend a long time in the perennials area of nurseries, carefully choosing each specimen. Hours in the hot sun etc etc. Once I left my cart full of plants, obviously a customer's cart, while I went down a narrow aisle to pick out another plant. When I got back, someone had taken several of the perennials I had spent so much time over. This has happened a couple of times, no doubt in all innocence sometimes...and sometimes not. A nursery employee said some people notice others who seem to know what they are doing and help themselves. Now I keep the cart with me, no matter how inconvenient. Sounds ridiculous...and it really is a rare person who would do that but I guess they're out there.