Of the many varieties related to garden hydrangeas and crossbreeds, only the current bestsellers can be listed; in case of doubt, however, you can orientate yourself with regard to the flowering time on the flowering times of the original species, which are also listed below.
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Flowering times of the most common commercial hydrangeas
Hydrangeas have been planted and bred as ornamental plants here since the 18th century. After a short dry spell at the end of the last century, when hydrangeas were not so popular, breeding only really exploded before the turn of the millennium, today there is an almost unmistakable variety of varieties. The varieties commonly sold are often not attributable to one species, but mostly consist of (genetic engineering) crossings of several species, which is why they are called hydrangea hybrids instead of a botanical name. Here is the heyday of the hydrangeas currently most popular in the trade:
1. Hydrangea blossoms from May offer the following varieties:
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Doppio Rosa’, max. Height 1.5 m, dark pink plate flowers with upright light pink pointed flowers from May to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, giant garden hydrangea ‘Incredible’, height 1 m, large white flower balls from May to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Doppio Nuvola’, height 1 m, flowers in white, cream, pink from May to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Doppio Bianco’, maximum height 1.5 m, flat white plate flowers from May to October
2. Hydrangea blossoms from June show the following varieties:
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Saxon Schloss Wackerbarth’, maximum height 1.25 m, large, colorful flowers with blue, yellow, green, pink, red components from June to September
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Farbtraum’, height 1 m, two-colored flowers in pink and blue from June to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Miss Saori Blue’, height 1 m, white flowers with a purple border from June to September
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Miss Saori’, height 1 m, white flowers with a pink edge from June to September
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Blue Ballad’, height up to 1.5 m, flowers in color gradients from green, yellow to red, pink to blue and purple from June to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Curly Sparkle Red’, max. Height 1.5 m, purple flowers from June to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Curly Sparkle Blue Purple’, max. Height 1.5 m, deep, dark purple flowers from June to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Deep Purple Dance’, growth height up to 1.5 m, flower develops from yellow, green to rich velvety purple, June to October
- Hydrangea hybrid hydrangea stems, bright red flowers with yellow accents June to September
- Hydrangea hybrid hydrangea stems, white to cream colored flowers June to September
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Pink Pop’, growth height up to 1.5 m, flower develops from yellow, green to pink to strong pink, June to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Red Reggae’, height up to 1.5 m, bright red flowers with yellow accents from June to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Peppermint Pink’, growth height up to 1 m, flowers white-pink like the well-known peppermint stick, from June to September
3. Hydrangea blooms from July onwards are a matter of the following “late bloomers”:
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea high stem ‘Limelight’, growth height up to 1.2 m, giant inflorescences up to 30 cm in yellow, green, pink from July to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Pinky Winky’, growth height up to 1.5 m, conical flower panicles that change color from white to deep red, flowers July to October
- Hydrangea hybrid, hydrangea ‘Snowflake’, growth height up to 1.5 m, double white flower panicles that turn pink before blooming, blooms July to September
- Hydrangea hybrid, panicle hydrangea ‘Limelight’, growth height up to 1.5 m, flower candles up to 30 cm in size, which change from yellow-green to cream to pink, blooms from July to October
Hydrangea blossoms for the advanced
In addition to the various hydrangea varieties that dominate the mass market, there are other hydrangea species and varieties that have been cultivated in other parts of the world for a long time. With increasing globalization, more and more of these species are also available here, here are the flowering times of these hydrangeas:
- Hydrangea anomala, climbing hydrangea from East Asia, densely bushy, well-branched, climbing climbing shrub approx. 10 m high, white flowers June to July
- Hydrangea arborescens, forest or tree hydrangea with the ball hydrangea ‘Annabelle’ as a prominent representative, medium-high shrub with greenish to white flowers from July to September.
- Hydrangea aspera, rough hydrangea or fur hydrangea, 2-3 m high hydrangea, blooms in bluish umbels with white, pink marginal flowers from July to August
- Hydrangea heteromalla, Chinese hydrangea, 2 to 5 m high shrub or small tree with white flowers on umbrella-shaped, hairy umbels from June to July
- Hydrangea hirta, hairy hydrangea from Asia that grows 1 m high and grows unusually slowly; Serrated leaves with distinctive veins, light purple to white flowers July to August
- Hydrangea involucrata, bract hydrangea or button hydrangea from Japan, max. 1.3 m, blue to violet-pink flowers with white marginal flowers from August to September
- Hydrangea macrophylla, garden hydrangea, part of most of the garden center hybrids listed above, but also available in real cultivars in various flower colors, flowers July to October
- Hydrangea paniculata, panicle hydrangea from East Asia, 2 m final height, many varieties (‘Grandiflora’, ‘Pink Lady’, ‘Unique’), flowers in lilac-like panicles white, greenish and pink mostly from July to October
- Hydrangea petiolaris, climbing hydrangea, max. 6 m, self-climbing and industry-proof, white flowers from June to July
- Hydrangea quercifolia, oak-leaved hydrangea, around 1.5 m, flowers in several varieties (‘Applause’, ‘Burgundy’, ‘Pee Wee’) white to pink or pink from July to August
- Hydrangea sargentiana, velvet hydrangea from China, blooms in flat panicles pale purple on the inside and white on the outside from late July to August
- Hydrangea serrata, Sawn hydrangea, growth height up to 1.2 m, is also used as a tea hydrangea in its Japanese homeland, flowers white to pink from July to August
In the case of hydrangeas imported from foreign continents, the winter hardiness demands a little attention. She is not always very well trained, so if in doubt, the seller should have precise information and advice on hand. You may therefore need winter protection (like many of the commercial hybrids), but a hydrangea is unlikely to freeze away forever: All 59 currently known species of the genus Hydrangea have developed in climates that are not extremely distant from our temperate climate, the majority grow in nature as undergrowth in the forest. Such forest plants even need the cool season, also for flower induction.
Flowering times are variable
Plants are living beings that differ from the second, animal kingdom of life in some features, but have one thing in common with animals in any case: Every living being is an individual that develops very individually, also with regard to the flowering times (where the for “clones” propagated by cuttings only applies to a reduced extent).
When exactly a hydrangea flowers depends on the species (or the species involved); but also about the earth, the weather, the light, your green thumb and the microclimate (it’s warmer in the city), the location (greenhouse, winter garden?), the fertilizer, the rearing and the good or bad mood of the plant – the flowering time of a cultivated plant can really be influenced by many factors.
The “official heydays” are therefore not “set in stone”, and with freshly imported species one can experience some surprises anyway. This is where you are most likely to track down the flowering time if you compare your German winter hardiness zone with the winter hardiness zone of the hydrangea home; the more the two match, the more the hydrangea will stick to the flowering time given by the (Chinese? German?) seller.
But as I said, the common commercial varieties are mostly clones with a limited life of their own, for which you can rely on the specified flowering time; And if you dare to experiment with strange or rare hydrangeas, you will usually not be shocked by surprises.
Conclusion
Hydrangeas definitely bloom in the middle of summer, sometimes in spring and very often in autumn. But even if a hydrangea does not exactly adhere to the “prescribed” flowering time, it will bloom long and abundantly and turn “your piece of garden” into a summer paradise.