Back in the day, every house had a hydrangea bush or two. Some would be pink … some would be blue … most would be next to the front door, back door or outhouse door.
For a fair while, hydrangeas went out of fashion and faded from prominence at nurseries and garden centres and on TV gardening shows.
But as the saying goes – everything old is new again – and hydrangeas are back baby … but this time they’ve been glammed up for the new millennium.
Two varieties which I reckon are rippers are Hydrangea ‘Obsidian Collection’ and Hydrangea ‘Sundae Fraise’.
‘Obsidian Collection’ are a group of traditional looking compact and bushy hydrangea plants, but with super-charged flowers.
They come in three basic forms:
‘Storm Cloud’ – this has the typical big full mop or ball flower head in a lavender-purple colour, maturing to a bold, bright pink. You can also change the colour to blue by adding a ‘hydrangea blue’ product to the soil. This increases the pH level slightly and – like magic – changes the flower from pink to blue.
‘Black Lace’ is known as a lace cap flower type, meaning that it has an open flower head, with the individual flowers opening gradually to prolong the blooming period. It comes in the colours of pink, mauve or blue.
‘White Knight’ is a full ball shaped flower but in brilliant white.
All three forms have distinctive black stems, which just sets them apart from other varieties. ‘White Knight’ in particular glows against the dark leaves and black stems. They also make striking cut flowers too.
The ‘Obsidian Collection’ group are easy to grow, preferring a good rich soil, part-shaded (particularly in the harsh hot summer) and don’t like their roots to get overly dry.
The other variety I fancy is Hydrangea ‘Sundae Fraise’, which is a larger shrub with longer stems and smaller leaves.
The breed is a French one and the name translates to strawberry sundae.
Their outstanding feature is the large cone-shaped flower heads that explode from the ends of the stems. They are honestly breathtaking. And to top it off, the flowers start lime green, turn white then mature through creams and soft pinks, gradually changing to their final deep strawberry pink colour.
Adding to their looks, they are fairly hardy and can be grown in full sun – but do best if protected from the harsh afternoon heat. And they respond wonderfully to a yearly prune, which just makes them bushier and grow even more flowers.
Cuttings can be struck from the prunings, meaning you can grow more plants for yourself or give them as gifts to others.
A word of warning – all hydrangeas contain chemicals which can be toxic to cats, dogs and horses if eaten, and can cause skin irritations from the sap. So grow them with some caution.
At the end of the day, hydrangeas are back and they really should be a part of everyone’s garden collection.
(Images and information courtesy of Plants Management Australia www.pma.com.au)