PlantSowGrow
How to plant and care for Hydrangea (Mophead)
Hydrangea macrophylla
Big globes of blue, pink or white flowers in late summer. Flower colour depends on soil: blue in acid, pink in alkaline.
When to plant and care for it
Timed for a typical UK garden (last frost mid-April). The app uses your own town's frost dates.
Growing Hydrangea (Mophead): what it needs
- Light
- Part shade · 6+ hours a day
- Watering
- Water well until established, then in dry spells
- Soil
- Moist, rich soil
- Spacing
- 1.2 m
- Height
- 1.2–1.5 m
- In pots
- Only in large containers
- Feeding
- Balanced feed in spring
- Hardiness
- USDA zones 4–9
Step by step
- On planting day
Plant
Plant at the same depth as it was in its pot, 1.2 m apart, and firm in.
- 0–1 days after “Plant”
Water In Well
Give a full can of water, then keep moist for the first few weeks while roots establish.
- 7–14 days after “Water In Well”
Mulch Around the Base
Spread 5 cm of compost or bark around the plant, keeping it off the stems.
Every year
- MarchSpring Prune
Cut last year's dead flower heads back to the first pair of fat, healthy buds. Remove one or two of the oldest stems at the base.
- MayFeed
Apply a general feed (or a "blueing" feed for blue flowers on acid soil).
- JulyWater in Dry Spells
Hydrangeas wilt quickly in heat — water deeply at the base.
- OctoberLeave Flower Heads for Winter
Leave the old flower heads on over winter — they protect the buds below from frost.
