disclosure: this post is brought to you by Endless Summer ® Hydrangeas.
At the back of the house, around the corner from the meadow and the hay bales is a tiny garden path with round stepping stones that leads to the side yard.
It kind of gets forgotten.
The flower bed is overgrown and a little neglected and left behind the rest of the yard.
Until now.
This weekend we pulled weeds and removed old plants and pruned existing shrubs and filled the flower beds with mulch and added a little bit of happiness with….
….Endless Summer ® Bloom Struck ® Hydrangeas.
These are my favorite hydrangeas EVER.
In the history of ever.
I can’t even with how beautiful they are and how they transformed the sad, neglected flower bed into something worthy of a tea party.
Looking for beautiful hydrangeas for your flower bed? Here are 5 simple tips for planting hydrangeas.
Tip 1: Location, location, umm…location
Here is the flower bed before.
See how overgrown the shrubs were? We removed a couple of the plants to make way for the hydrangea.
The key to any hydrangea planting is to choose the right location. This can make all the difference in your blooms. This location gets full morning sun and then dappled sunlight later on in the day. The amount of sunlight also depends on how far south or north you are, too. When we lived in Texas and I grew hydrangea, even the morning sun was too much for them. We planted them in a location that had dappled sunlight throughout the day and the hydrangeas loved it. The farther north you live (Zones 4-5a) the more sunlight the hydrangea can tolerate.
2. Amend the soil
This is what hydrangeas long for. Beautiful, sweet, incredible amended dirt. The easiest way to know how to amend your dirt is to talk to your local nursery.
You want to make sure you have at least 5% organic matter in the soil. The organic matter helps break up the soil and creates air pockets in the dirt that help with water drainage.
Here’s the first hole we dug. We made it extra deep to make sure we had good, amended soil to plant the hydrangea in. You can also add a little fertilizer into the hole to help stimulate root growth.
3. Check the roots
Remove the hydrangea plant from the plastic bucket you brought it home from the garden center or nursery in. Inspect the roots. If they are tightly packed, slightly loosen them with your finger to give them breathing room. This will also help them to grow when placed into the hole.
4. Plant your hydrangea at the right height
After you’ve dug the hole and amended the soil and loosened the roots, place the hydrangea into the hole and fill it back with dirt. You want the crown of the plant (where the stem meets the soil) to be even with the ground. If you put too much of the hydrangea into the soil, it can cause the plant to rot and not to bloom.
After you’ve lightly packed the dirt around the base of the plant, create a tiny dam around the perimeter of the plant and fill with water. This extra step really helps to make sure the newly-planted hydrangea has all the water it needs.
5. Just the right amount of water
You want to make sure you add just the right amount of water to the hydrangea plant.
Over watering the plant can stunt blooms.
Our key to success? A soaker hose. We get a lot of rain in KY, so we don’t need to water that much, but when the temperatures get hotter causing the ground to dry up. We just turn on the soaker hose and it drips water without over watering. Mulch is your friend, too. Adding mulch to the flower beds helps keep the ground cooler and protects the soil from the sun.
Here’s the same bed after.
We planted 4 three-gallon buckets of Endless Summer ® Bloom Struck ® Hydrangeas and lined them up in the flower bed amidst roses and boxwood and magnolia.
The best thing about Endless Summer Hydrangeas ®? They keep blooming and blooming and blooming all summer long.
You can click here to find a retailer near you.
From now until fall the garden will look just like this.
Branch after branch after branch of beautiful blooms.
Aren’t they beautiful?
And the best part? If you follow the tips and the planting suggestions and add in water and sunshine….
….your blooms will come back year after year.
And that sad, neglected garden path?
Now it looks like this.
Audrey Hepburn once said, “To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.”
I think this tomorrow will be extra sweet. 🙂
disclosure: Compensation and product for this post were provided by Endless Summer Hydrangeas ®.
All opinions are my own.
Please see my disclosure page for more information.
Oh those are beautiful! I've been reworking the flowerbeds at the farm and these would be perfect in a couple of spots. I'm going to look for some! Thanks for sharing. The side yard looks just gorgeous now. :)
I JUST bought a hydrangea plant this weekend and have been watching my yard to be sure I am planting it in the right spot. These are my favorite plants, but I often have a "drying up" problem because we live so far south. I am taking your advice to plant under some trees where some just dapples in rather than in full sun. How I wish I had a soaker hose, though!
As a hydrangea addict, I truly appreciate this! Also, I have not purchased the Endless Summer Hydrangeas, yet....which means (as I am a mother of four) I will shop this week and gift at least three to me and my garden as a mother's day blessing!!!
These are undoubtedly the most beautiful hydrangeas ever! That they bloom all summer is the frosting on the cake. Your great tips on the planting process is giving me the courage to go where I've never gone before - to plant some of these gorgeous Endless Summer Hydrangeas!! Thank-you for this lovely post and beautiful photos.
I'm not Madonna and don't abhor hydrangeas. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE them and have several sprinkled around my yard. They are just gorgeous and give my garden so much bang for the buck! I haven't been able to master white hydrangeas so purchase them to set about my back patio during parties as they fill tables so nicely. You did good lovely lady!
I had Endless Summer H in a pot all summer last year & then gave them to a friend who planted them in her garden here in Austria. We are moving stateside in June---to TX. so I want to TRY & grow them there in the shade. It is Central, TX so wish me luck!
These are so beautiful! I have loved Hydrangeas since I was a little girl. Mom had taken me with her to a neighbor's house and when we rounded the corner of the porch to head up the steps, there they were. As tall as me (at the time) and with the biggest most beautiful purple globes of flowers I had ever seen.
Love them, can't beat the beauty of these bushes and the long lasting blooms, my Mum always pushed an old poker in the ground to change the colour...gorgeous....enjoy.
Love all types of hydrangeas! The endless summer ones also die all the way down in the winter, then come back up in the spring (here in Michigan anyway) so don't think they are dead in early spring! And they definitely need sunlight here in the north or you get a beautiful green plant and no blooms! How sad that is!! Had to move one of mine several times to find the right spot ?
I love hydrangeas...I dry them at the end of their season. I was thinking of adding an Endless Summer to my full sun backyard here in Minnesota! Love the colors....so pretty.
I had Annabelle hydrangeas by my front porch for over 20 years, 3 plants that my son and husband gave to me shortly after building our current home. They got morning sun and plenty of water from a near by down spout. As you stated location is key! They were stunners and people loved to walk by and admire their blooms. Sadly we had to remove them last fall as they had become overgrown. I had thinned them many times but our landscaper said they were just past their prime. I've been looking at endless summer and limelight and maybe even a tree variety. Yours are beautiful and I know they will bring garden joy for years to come. Great tips on planting.
I have many in my NC garden, they need to be in mostly shade all day in our hot summers. They pretty much take care of themselves. You can add an alkaline solution when you plant if you want your purples to be pink or pinkish. I did that with the two I planted last summer.
Oh how I LONG for hydrangeas in Phoenix. They do not grow here. I have tried....planting them on the north side of the house but year after year, nature just won't allow it. Peonies, too.....I cannot grow here. Thank you for bringing those beautiful flowers into my life this morning.... I can buy them at the grocery store but I still haven't figure out how to get them to last in a vase...a day later they are droopy and sad. Must be my lot in life.
Hydrangea or lilacs? I don't think I could ever choose between the two. Both are so lovely and so gorgeous!! Well done KariAnne!! xoxo
I have one hydrangea on the east side of my house. It hasn't bloomed yet but I see at least one soon to be bloom peeking out over the lush leaves. I don't remember the name but the blooms are white with a blush colored edge...I know.... I couldn't believe it, either. I love your beautiful home, your heart, and now your hydrangea planting tips!
What is the best way to preserve their blooms? Hydrangea wreaths are gorgeous! Looks like these Endless Summer Hydrangeas will give you plenty of blooms for lots of decorating! :)
I adore hydrangeas and, strangely, I don't see many of them in my part of the country. We have a gorgeous blue one in our backyard and I have since added a white one. They just make me happy! I will look into these, though. There's always room for one more!
Hydrangeas are my absolute favorite summer flowers! I planted 3 hydrangeas when we moved here 11 years ago. I can't wait for them to start blooming! ? Yours that are already blooming from the nursery makes me want to go buy some that are blooming! ?
That looks wonderful. I love hydrangeas. My grandmother in Louisiana had them all around her house and they were huge!! We really can't grown them here. I guess if I put a pot of them in the ground they may last a season. Haven't really tried it. You mentioned that they like a little sun now and then. I do have a place under a big oak tree next to a fence that I may try again. It sure makes we want to do that. Thanks and enjoy them!
My favorites. Simply beautiful. I'm sure they are quite happy on the farm, too.
I love Endless Summer Hydrangeas and had planted quite a few next to what once was a neglected path in my previous home. You've got me thinking now about where I could use a few in my new home - I love them!
Thanks for the hints- will try it out! Yours look beautiful!
Hydrangeas are my absolute favorite!!!! I have recently downsized and moved and thus far I don't have any hydrangeas!!? Still searching for a perfect spot to plant at least one! Yours are beautiful!!!
Beautiful! I have endless summer in our woodland fringe area, then limelight hydrangeas in the sunny border With roses. Love those flowers. Also, for people with sun/moisture issues, I have had great luck with the endless summer as container plants on my shaded porch. Just use a decent size planter and enjoy the blooms.
Karianne: What you offer up about plants that you get in the ground without buds? I got some hydrangea plants, that so far, seem to be okay. Planted them about 3 weeks ago. When can I expect some blooms? I'm in SE Texas. We're actually have a mild (temp) and dry spring here. TIA!
Too bad I didn't see this before I planted mine! But I think I followed most of your advice, so hopefully they'll do well. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for these tips! I loooove hydrangeas but struggle to get mine to bloom. Will try your advice. So glad I found you at the #HomeMattersParty!
I want to try planting both hydrangea and lilacs this year. Great tips! Thanks for sharing at the Inspiration Spotlight party. Pinned & sharing.
These are the most gorgeous hydrangeas!! We have two hydrangea bushes, but I'd love a whole hedge (or two) of them someday! Thank you for linking up with Merry Monday last week - I'll be featuring your tips at our upcoming party. Hope you'll drop by and link up again!
For the last 15 years, I plant 2 hydrangeas in pots for my front porch and every fall they go into the ground. I have them in my front planting beds, at the back and on one side of the house. Just LOVE them! Our house is blue, and I get the original endless summer type. Our house is known as the "hydrangea house" in our neighborhood. I intermix with impatients, geraniums, wave petunias and pansies for added color. And, I dry the blooms in the fall for arrangements. Beautiful plants!!