{Sponsored Post}
Today I want to talk about one of my favorite subjects… planting hydrangeas!! When it comes to hydrangeas, I consider myself to be somewhat of a hoarder… collector! 😉 Hydrangeas are my absolute favorite flowers and I just can’t seem to get enough of them!
I’m a big fan of The Endless Summer® Collection, they typically bloom longer than the average hydrangea, up to 10-12 weeks longer! That’s whole lot more blooming time! In fact, they are the world’s first and best selling assortment of re-blooming hydrangeas. So when I was given the opportunity to receive a free Hydrangea plant, in a brand new variety called BloomStruck™, and post about it… I couldn’t resist!!
Here you can some of the established Hydrangeas in my backyard. Including the gorgeous bright blue one in the foreground and a beautiful Lavender hued bush in the back!
The new one arrived like this… carefully wrapped up in brown paper. I couldn’t wait to tear it open to see the new variety! Even the pot is a pretty color!
It almost seems silly to write a post about how to plant and grow these pretties, because they are so easy to grow, there’s really not much to it… another reason why I love them! However I do have a few tips for you. The first one is, that picking a location is really important. I’ve found that my Hydrangeas love morning sun, but the afternoon sun is just too much for them. So you will want to find a spot in your yard that gets sun in the morning and partial shade in the afternoon. I like to grow mine close to my house, it makes it easier to find a spot with the right mix of sun and shade, and I feel like having them closer to the house gives them a little more protection during the harsh winter months. Once you’ve found your spot, dig a hole slightly larger than your plant size. 
We’ve planted hydrangeas in every home that we’ve lived in for over 20 years, and those homes had all types of soil. I’ve never had to amend my soil and they always grew great, but if your soil is particularly bad, you may want to amend it, before planting your hydrangea. Fertilizer is recommended as well. This is another step that I usually skip, we typically throw a little compost in the hole instead. Again, depending on your soil you may want to add the fertilizer, and perhaps it may give your plant a boost in growth, even if you have good soil. I’ll provide a link below for more info on planting. Make sure you add a nice layer of mulch on top and then water your new plant!
Here’s a close up of the beautiful new BloomStruck™ variety! Isn’t it gorgeous?!! I love the soft lilac shade of this plant! A new favorite for sure! Keep in mind that depending on the pH level of your soil, the colors will change over time, although you can correct that if you want to. In our last house all of my hydrangeas changed over to pink tones, at our current home they go towards vibrant blues. Endless Summer® actually has a product that you can add to your soil to get more control over the colors. You can use Color Me Pink™ or Color Me Blue™ to get the color that you want! Once planted there’s not much else to do but enjoy them! I do give them a good soak during the hottest summer months, especially if it hasn’t rained in awhile. I don’t prune mine either. All summer long you will have beautiful flowers brightening up your yard! You can cut some blooms and enjoy in arrangements. And in the fall, you can harvest the blooms to dry for Wreaths, or to display in Baskets etc. I usually harvest mine right before the first frost. After the frost hits it’s too late, so keep an eye on the weather if you want a good crop to enjoy all winter! FYI, dried hydrangreas look great tucked into Christmas trees too! For more info about these gorgeous plants check out The Endless Summer® Collection site HERE. Be sure and check out their “Care and Growing” section for more lots more tips and info!
Be sure to visit the Endless Summer brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ posts!
Patty says
There’s a purlish/pink one I like with red tinged leaves and dark stems – that’s my favorite!
Kelly D says
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Kelly D says
I like the violet colored Hydrangeas, they are one of my favorite flowers.
Leslie says
We moved to a very hot part of California where the summer temperatures are regularly above 90 degrees. I planted my hydrangeas on the north side of the house but their leaves were scorched and burned and they would wilt every time the sun hit them. Morning or afternoon, it made no difference. I tried putting them under a tree. They had lots of leaves, but no flowers. A few years ago, desperately trying to lower the temperature for them, I strung some misters over their heads and turned them on. Perfect solution. No more wilting and no more burned leaves. I now have a less visible system using green garden stakes that barely peek above the bushes with greenhouse misters on top all running on a timer. The misters don’t put out enough water to drag the mopheads down – just enough to protect and cool them.
Miss Virginia says
My absolute favorite are the blues, but I think I’m falling in love with the lilac shade you just bought! Hydrangeas are my favorite flower. They’re just gorgeous. I love how you can change the color of them as well–it’s fascinating, and that’s coming from someone who’s not a science person! Haha.
April says
I think my favorite color is the one you just planted above… a slight purplish cast to the flowers!
Beetree says
I love the blue! But pink is beautiful as well- you can’t go wrong with hydrangeas- no matter the color. 🙂 Thanks for a chance to win! /)
Kathy says
I, too, love hydrangeas. Every year I plant a couple small ones to bring gorgeous color into my yard. They are small but will eventually grow and be the stars of the yard!
Kathy says
I forgot to mention color! Each year the colors of my hydrangeas surprise me. Love the deep pinks and blue/lavendar varieties.
Gina S. says
This would be so cool to win. I need to pick up 4 Blue Hydrangeas to replace my peonies. Thanks for the chance to win!
Cynthia Banessa says
Love them all…and yes blue is very pretty!
Mz V says
I love hydrangeas….blooming, dried, whatever. I dried all the blooms from my son’s wedding last summer….I’ve had fun playing with them in arrangements, etc.
Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions says
Beautiful hydrangea, Karen! I love them, too. Hydrangeas and roses are my favorites. I just put in three very small ones – a blue one in an urn and two purple/white in our front bed. Two years ago I put three pink ones in a side bed. It is a hard choice between the pink and purple for me, but I guess I will choose the pink. : )
Joyce Mayer says
We just bought a Vanilla Strawberry, and it has red stems, the blooms begin white and then turn to pink. We found it at our local nursery.
Thank you for the generous giveaway. Please include me.
Amy Murillo says
I too, LOVE hydrangeas, blue is my very favorite! Thanks much for a chance at your great giveaway! Amy M.
Marti says
I love Hydrangeas, but have never grown them, blue ones are my favorites!
Donna Self says
I love the white and pink, but with that being said, I have the Blue flater variety in my front yard. I think they are endless summer. Thanks for the entry to the give-a-way.
Valerie Gelinas says
I just purchased my first hydrangea this year. I am very excited to get it in the ground. My favorite color are the blue ones. I have Endless Summer! I am happy to learn about other varieties of blue Hydrangea’s too! Thanks for the chance at this giveaway
Valerie gelinas says
My favorite are Blue Endless Summer hydrangeas! I just got one this year and look forward to seeing the beautiful blue in my yard. I am very excited to learn about other blue varieties as well. Thanks you for the chance at this give-away