First question: absolutely yes. Lack of fibrous roots is the downfall. Last question: Seed providence can be very beneficial when attempting to grow borderline plants. Every now and then a horse such as Secretariat comes along, that's my example. On a smaller yet comparable scale, many examples can be noted: Cedrus deodara "Carl Fuch's Selections" - 'Polar Winter', 'Eisregren', etc-. These are all capable of lifetime survival in zone 5. I had several other comparable hardiness species in mind yesterday but I'm blanking right now. Nevertheless, seed origin or wood for grafting purposes makes all the difference in the world of bringing plants from other climates which will have much better acclimation to the climate of your own. I call it in my own terms, "Comparing Climates." The guys in Oregon can grow nursery stock so quickly it's mind-boggling. They do use Rootmaker type products with heavy fertilizers for a few 6 months to get the seedlings going and then they move them into the field and continue to juice em while transplanting them for several years prior to the last field digging. What I can grow here in the same amount of time might be 4" tall when their seedlings come to me for a buck .39 at a foot or more depending upon the species.......... Getting plants established in zone 5.....you're going to need to plant early spring (not fall ever) and you job is to babysit it. It's the same for grafting trees. My job is to babysit them. There's really no difference between what you're going to do than what I do, I'm just in a greenhouse until the last frost. Pay attention to weather and cover your tender shrubs, too, as needed... if they've already broken dormancy. Hope you have a better understanding of this. Dax

I like your texture and color mix of that bed. Good that you are at least getting a bloom! Oh as a side note, so no one gets the wrong impression...Quickfire typically has a tighter/neater habit than Pink Winky. Its more evident once the PW starts blooming. Obviously it could be a total differnt story based on 1 vs. 1.

Sharon, mine gets sun all day, more than 10 hours. It's at the top of a SW facing slope with no nearby shade. I have more sun than shade, so haven't tried growing one in part shade. However, nicholsworth55 has posted photos of her H. paniculata in zone 6 midwest that grow in dappled shade with very little sun. They aren't Pinky Winky, but IME all of the various cultivars of H. paniculata seem to have similar requirements, so I think that PW would most likely be fine in 5 hours, but perhaps a bit less dense than a full sun plant. As far as pruning a tree form, you will need to remove any sprouts along the "trunk". It's easiest to just rub them off when the buds are just starting to swell along the "trunk", but if they get bigger, just prune them off with sharp clippers. If needed to shape the plant, you can shorten the branches in early spring, but once the leaves start growing, don't prune any more or you may be removing flower buds. As I said above, I don't prune any of my panicle hydrangeas since they have enough space, and they still bloom profusely, so it isn't necessary to prune them if you are happy with the shape and size.

I prefer my mulch to be shredded and undyed. I am happy to have it decompose quickly since it will enrich the soil, so I end up renewing the mulch every 2-3 years. Don't put it right against the trunk but give a space of a few inches around the trunk. Water is best given in a way that it will slowly sink in, so don't dump it all on at once. A good way to do this is to put a pin hole in the bottom of a gallon jug and let it slowly drain over the plant. Pinky Winky (and all other Hydrangea paniculatas) are fairly drought resistant compared to other types of hydrangeas, but you need to water it regularly for the first year. Since it's new, you will want to water it twice a week, and I'd give it 4 liters (a gallon) each time unless you have had at least an inch of rain. Periodically stick your finger down as far as it will go into the dirt of the original root ball to be sure that it is slightly damp since occasionally water will have trouble moving between native soil and the planting medium that the plant was grown in. Don't cut it back. If you cut off branches, you remove the leaves that feed the plant. I only prune my Pinky Winky to remove spent blossom heads in early spring. Be sure to plant PW where it has lots of room to grow. Mine was planted in fall of 2009 or spring of 2010. Here it is in the spring of 2010 on the far left, with the 5' tall spiral trellises for scale. Note the placement of the tiny sprig of a clematis several feet in front of it. Here it is in August of 2013. The spiral closest above has been moved to where the clematis sprig is in the first photo and you can see how much it has grown in 3 years. By the fall of 2014 it has grown to be about 12 feet wide and has completely surrounded the spiral trellis to the point you can no longer see it, and is now just touching the arborvitae in the first photo. (Neither plant has been moved since originally planted.) I had no idea when I planted it that that PW could get this big, and can't imagine trying to keep a plant this vigorous smaller by pruning, so plan on putting it in a spot where it can expand. I don't baby this plant. After its first season, it has thrived on benign neglect since it is in a bed not at my house. It has full sun, good soil, mulch, and natural rainfall (we average 43 inches or so annually) and I only water when we've gone more than three weeks without rain since dragging hoses from a distant faucet to this spot is a major hassle.