In my experience, Annabelle prefers shade to sun even with lots of water in the equation. Of course, I'm in the South where the heat is more menacing. Mine perform much better on the North side of my home.

You mention they would get morning sun and late afternoon sun. The latter is typically the hottest sun of the day, so it would be what you have to worry about most.

My best guess would be for Little Lime, but with that dappled shade the panicles may stay green longer than they otherwise would.

Thank you for your thoughts! While the later afternoon sun is hot here, it is pretty minimal for this spot, maybe an hour of it if that?

Xty, the Eastern side of my home was even too hot for my Annabelles.

Little Lime would give you a fitting shrub for your needs and would be far more likely to succeed in your location.

I don't blame you for wanting Annabelle (they are gorgeous), but you might try to find a more forgiving spot.

Depends on when you want blooms, too. Annabelles begin blooming in late May whereas most paniculatas will not put out much until July. Annabelle will crank out many more blooms per square foot than almost any other hydrangea, and some of them push a foot across - pretty nifty. Annabelles also do well against foundations because they are less likely to flop. The blooms also remain white for about 60 days max, and then they will turn a pleasant shade of green for the remainder of the summer.

Looking to create a sweep of frothy white along a curve, I chose Bobo. Appreciate the glistening white of its blooms' lacy effect, the smaller leaves closely spaced along the branches, the graceful silhouette of the shrub at every stage, the sturdiness in winds & downpours and its long bloom from June past frost here. Considered Little Lime, but its flowers are more cream than white to my eye. Bobo's green tinge at bud stage & first opening disappears quickly & I like that, too. The pale dusty pink tones didn't tint the white flowerheads till the crisp days & chilly nights of Autumn arrived.

Some nurseries give Bobo's mature size as 4' tall & wide, and that's what I anticipate here. Tend to trial one or two plants for a full year before taking the plunge on multiples. Bobo passed with flying colors & plan to complete that long curve this year. Searching Bobo on this forum turns up a good number of posts, some of which, like yours, discuss other paniculatas in comparison. Some report Bobo begins to bloom earlier than Little Lime & has more blooms. One thread -http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/1653326/bobo-is-bodacious 

Vasue, how poetic! I love your vision! If Bobo actually reached 4' tall than that sounds perfect. I did do a little searching on this forum and found a lot of positives about Bobo. It just needs to get tall enough!

I also think that with your drier air and the southern exposure with the intensity of the sun at 6000', you don't want Annabelle. If you have an eastern or even northeastern exposure it may be OK. Mine stops at just about 4'-4.5' high, but doesn't like to be dry at all and mine gets only 4-5 hours of morning sun.

I love the H. paniculatas like Bobo and Little Lime which are more sun tolerant and while they don't like being too dry, they don't need the higher levels of moisture that Annabelle requires. If you can be flexible as to cultivar, look also at 'White Diamond' and 'Dharuma' both of which (like Bobo) start blooming earlier than most H. paniculatas and will stay short. 'White Diamond' is lacier (which I prefer) and was specifically selected for the white of its flowers. Mine is new, but everywhere I've checked says 4' tall by 5' wide. 'Dharuma' is a similar height but narrower.

I have Bob facing south in zone 5a, and no problems with the sun. This summer will be a full year of them in the ground and they are maybe 2.5 feet tall. Not tall, but they will grow this year and after a touch of pruning next spring, I'm sure they will hit 3 feet.

So, maybe buy a 3-footer if you need the height sooner than later. It is a very nice hydrangea and I own 6 spread around my property. I even keep 1 in a pot.

Steppskie, in zone 5 do they die back during the winter? I posted this question in the Perennial thread and someone there said their hydrangea dies down to the ground in the winter in zone 5. Also, what is the fall color like on the Bobo's out of curiosity?

I will definitely check out those other cultivars. Thank you NHBabs! Does anyone know much about Silver Dollar? When I search online about it I get mixed info as to how tall it will grow. Would Silver Dollar handle the sun better?

Xty G -

"someone there said their hydrangea dies down to the ground in the winter in zone 5." There are three main types of hydrangeas that you can consider for your area, and the species are important in able to predict how they will perform. The ones that die back are big leaf hydrangeas (H. macrophylla). You don't want them since they aren't bud hardy enough for your use, especially in the white forms.

The H. arborescens (like Annabelle) I don't think will stand up to your dryness in full sun, so I don't think you want them in the spot you describe, but they won't die back in winter in your zone. Even if they do (for instance sometimes the voles eat mine, so not winter-killed but all stems die back due to lack of bark) they can regrow and bloom from the roots each season.

The H. paniculata cultivars are also fully hardy for you, to either zone 3 or 4. So that would include most of the ones discussed here plus many others: Bobo, Silver Dollar (don't know anything about it), Little Lime, White Diamond. They will be fully hardy for you (any of them ) and will have no dieback. They will also handle your sun better than any of the other types, and though I don't have any experience growing at 6000', here in NH I grow them in full sun all day, probably more than 12 hours in July without any problems. Another one to check out is Baby Lace which is a bit taller than Bobo I think.

For size, look at the info source. Is it the breeder (not a just a nursery) or a botanical garden? I use those the plant's breeder (with a bit of skepticism) and botanical gardens from a spot no more than 1-2 zones away from me almost exclusively if I want reliable info on aspects of a plant such as size. Here's an article from Fine Gardening that summarizes first results from a multiyear trial at the Chicago Botanic Garden on H. paniculata. (It is from 2011 so it doesn't include any of the really new types, only older ones.) It does say that 'Silver Dollar' gets to 5' for them, so I think that would be reasonable for you also. That would be just tall enough to have the top flowers be visible through your windows, but if you want them shorter you would want to prune in late winter or choose another variety.

NHBabs, thank you again for all your help! I have been watching the sun over the past few days and I think this spot will actually get more sun during the day than I thought so your advice about Annabelle not handling the hot, dry sun is helpful. I will concentrate my search on the H. paniculata cultivars, as you suggest.

I did just find a nursery about an hour away that grows all their own plants so I will see what they carry. Otherwise what most nurseries carry here are Proven Winners or plants from Bailey's nursery in MN.

I may end up having to buy them from and online source if I can't find exactly what I am looking for around here.

The Baby Lace looks very intriguing to me. The 4'x4' size would be perfect. It is a cultivar I would probably have to buy online though.

I found a site that says Silver Dollar could grow to 8'. I don't want to risk it. We just pulled out a bunch of dwarf Arctic willows from this site that were supposed to stay under 5' but had grown up to 7'. We ended up having to prune them hard each spring for a few years to control their size and it was becoming a nuisance. I think this site is very favorable to plants because of the warm southern wall, rich soil, and drip irrigation so whatever we plant there may grow bigger than their specifications. Bobo may be just right because of this.

I do see on their website that Bailey Nursery grows White Diamonds, Bobo, and Little Lime so maybe I will be able to find one of them around here after all.

As mentioned, Bobo doesn't die back. It may have an occasional tip die from not properly hardening off, but you just pop off that tip.

Bobo, for me, is white then fades off slow to a light brown in late fall. This was only year 1 for me, and I can update you on Bobo this year, year 2.

If had leafed out nicely for me on all fronts and is a very pretty small shrub. Definitely slower growing than larger panicle varieties like Limelight and Vanilka Strawberry.

How is your bobo coming along Steppskie? When does it bloom for you?

My Bobo is budding right now...it is a little behind Quickfire...but before Strawberry Sundae and Little Lime (LL just started to form buds this week).

I have a QF tree and it is about 7 feet tall right now.

Bobo is almost 3 ft tall and wide.

Xty, for what it's worth, I am in zone 3/4 Calgary, which is also in a very high altitude area.

My Incrediballs do just fine here. They do have a lot of die back during winter, but they are very hardy and have come back year after year so far. They are in a part sun location.

My Little Lime does not thrive here. Mind you, it is under an apple tree, so perhaps the water is just not there.

I have not tried Bobo but other people have not reported good luck with Bobo in Alberta in the Far North forum....

On the other hand, my Quick Fire comes back year after year with little die back. It's in an east facing location that gets many hours of sun. After 3 years, it's still compact at 3' X 3' only!!! Way smaller than the QF in my zone 5 garden before. Have you considered QF or Little QF?

Thank you ostrich! That is all good information! I haven't considered QF but I will look into those.

Emily Saba, yes regular QF gets larger than Bobo by a factor of 2 or so. Mine is 6' or a little more in all directions. Little QF is also larger than Bobo and gets in the range of 4-5', though it's a bit narrower than tall.

I bought two Bobo last year and they wintered amazingly. I had no die back and I am in zone 3. Currently they are about 2.5 feet tall and are covered in buds!

So I know I want the bobos but can't seem to find a decent size for less than $40. Is that a good price?

Breanna, that is good to hear! Are the Bobo's in any protected location? The trouble with Calgary is that we have these Chinook winds which are not good for plants during winter... where about are you?

Emily, what size pot? The ones I see at local nurseries are usually about $25-$30 for a #1 pot. For $40 I'd expect a #3 pot.

I am in Regina! They are by my fence so they have a bit of protection but we are in a new development so we do get a lot of wind as we don't have much around us.

The fist one with the buds is the Bobo.

Breanna, they look great!

They are lovely, Breanna!!! Our high altitude and chinook winds cause big problems for our plants in Calgary, as you know!!! Regina is probably like Edmonton in that plants grow so much better there due to consistent snow cover over the winter... sthg that we lack in Calgary!!! Maybe I should try a Bobo in a big container :-)

Thanks!

Emily, I wouldn't worry about the size too much. I have found that H. paniculata grows quickly to full size, within 2 or 3 years from even a very small start. Whether that is a good price depends on whether you are willing to pay it for what you get. To my mind, that is all that matters.

NHBabs, I wonder if we should also consider the climate/zone too. When I lived in Zone 5 all of my paniculatas grew to full size quickly. Here in Zone 3, it's a whole different story for me... 3 years later, my QF is still only 3 x 3 feet even though it started as a big plant in a 5 gallon pot. The same for my Pinky Winky, etc etc. Something to think about...

navarro31 I had ordered from bluestone but canceled when I realized how small they were (3.5" square x 4" deep) and the others I called nurseries but forgot to ask what size pot when they told me the price. I'm going to call back today.

Emily, they are coming along and are beginning to bud. I will post pics after my much needed rains/storms have subsided.

I also have little quick fires which are in bloom, yay!

gunvy0407, I think they look beautiful! It is helpful, though to know they can get big fast. They maybe too much for my site.

I never did make a final decision on what to plant in my spot. I am still debating Bobo, White Lace, or even Snowmound spirea. Hopefully I will have something planted by next Spring ;).

Stunning gunvy0407.

With limited space we have enjoyed having "Bobo" in our garden for the past several years.

Here are a few of them from mid July.

And here is picture of one of them I took just today, over two months later....enough pink so it doesn't look that dirty brown.

Wow! Beautiful, rouge21, thanks for sharing!

How tall would you say they are and how old?

Thank you Xty G.

This is their 3rd full season in this location.

With blooms most of them are 3 feet tall and almost 4 feet in width.

I plan to trim them back much more next spring to see if that reduces their size as they would look better for this particular garden space if they were each closer to 3 feet in width

Great! Thank you!