This week's Sunday Gardener will introduce how to care for hydrangeas.
Updated: June 16, 2024 12:05 PM ET
It's Sunday Gardener time. I'm here at Valley View Farm with Kelly Angle. Good morning. Hi. We have hydrangeas blooming here. They're all over the place and they're really showing off. Oh my gosh. I remember 30 years ago they were like azaleas. The ones everyone planted. Then they became hydrangeas and they're everywhere. I vacation a lot in New England. Hydrangeas are great there. Well, I love them here in Maryland just as much. They seem to like being a little out of the afternoon sun. If you can give them some afternoon shade, that's great. But they love morning sun. Okay. Good to know. Partial is OK. But timing is key. Anyway it's great. Look at the colors. The ones I have now are small flowers. What difference does it make? Well, there are so many kinds. There are arborescences. There are big leaves. Anyway there are so many. Some will flower on new wood, some will flower on old wood. So when you prune them, you have to be aware of that. And I always have to look over and over. I have an oakleaf hydrangea at home that only blooms on old wood, so if you prune it, it won't bloom. But most of these are okay. There's also the lacecap variety, which grows into a big globular one, but this is a dwarf variety, so it doesn't get very tall. Because some of these get big. Some of them are huge. Yeah, let's talk about these other varieties. Look at some of them because they're so pretty. The ones that are about waist high. This is one of those great varieties, but these little flowers really attract a lot of pollinators. So, are you looking to attract different bees to your garden or something like that? With these flowers, the big flowers don't attract as many pollinators, but you can still attract them to your garden. Yeah, you're seeing bright pinks and bright blues, or purples. Uh, you said that it also depends on the pH of the soil.Is that so? What colors do they grow to? Amazing. It's like a science experiment. So how does that happen? Well, if you want them pink, you put lime in the soil. You put a little bit of soil back in. Then if you want them blue, you add acid. You add something like sulfates to the plant little by little, and it turns them that color. But it's really interesting to watch and it's a useful way to know what the PH is without having to get out the litmus paper and look it up. It's an indicator. Well, it's very pretty. But, as you say, you do need to prune them. But you need to know how to prune them depending on what kind you have. And it's something that you can repeat and check every year. Of course. And there are a lot of websites that give you that information. Here's a handout that will help you. Our signs will help you. Any of them can help you. Yeah, I like that. It's good for the pollinators and it's something that can really add color to your garden. Of course. Okay. That's it for the Sunday Gardener. If you have any gardening questions you'd like answered, you can contact the Sunday Gardener team by emailing us at
This week's Sunday Gardener will introduce how to care for hydrangeas.
Updated: June 16, 2024 12:05 PM ET
Carrie Engel of Valley View Farms introduces some hydrangea varieties that will add color to your garden, plus she explains how certain fertilizers can change the color of the flowers.
Carrie Engel of Valley View Farms introduces some hydrangea varieties that will add color to your garden, plus she explains how certain fertilizers can change the color of the flowers.
