Hydrangea
- Hardiness
- 3-9
- Mature size
- 3-8 ft by type
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Pollination
- Lacecaps and paniculatas feed pollinators; sterile mopheads don't
- Bloom season
- June - September by type
- Harvest season
- Dry heads for everlasting arrangements
Hydrangea
Family Hydrangeaceae
Whole summers organize themselves around hydrangeas — enormous, long-lasting flower heads that age from cream, blue, and pink into antique parchment shades worth cutting for winter. This entry covers three of them: garden hydrangea, climbing hydrangea, and oakleaf — one name, three distinct talents.
Among the three there's a hydrangea for nearly any spot from zone 3 to 9 — a shrub for the border, a climber for a shaded wall, an oakleaf whose foliage burns burgundy in fall. Bees visit; pets shouldn't chew. Match the type to your place and plant with confidence.
Attracts bees
Juglone-sensitive
From the print shop
Growing hydrangea? Hang it.
Our Plant Library collection carries hydrangea — Hydrangea macrophylla, print Nº 243, “Hydrangea.”
526 designsfrom $12.99white or black backgroundmatte poster, unframed
Which hydrangea do you have?
Hardiness differs across the 3 hydrangeas in this guide, so pick yours and this panel answers for that one.
Enter it once; every plant page remembers.
Hydrangea
- Mature size
- 3-8 ft by type
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Pollination
- Lacecaps and paniculatas feed pollinators; sterile mopheads don't
- Bloom season
- June - September by type
- Harvest season
- Dry heads for everlasting arrangements
Hydrangea · Common problems
Common hydrangea problems
Pests, diseases and weather to keep an eye on.
Nothing common enough to list for hydrangea. Watch it like anything else in the garden, and check the plants growing next to it.
Hydrangea · Which one do you have?
The 3 types this guide covers
Where these differ, the key facts above give the span across all of them. Each type’s own figures, as the catalogue records them:
Climbing Hydrangea
- Hardiness
- 4-8
- Mature size
- 30-50 ft eventually; 5 years to start moving
- Growth rate
- SLOW start, then stately
- Pollination
- Lacecap plates feed bees
- Bloom season
- June - July (white lace against green)
Oakleaf Hydrangea
- Hardiness
- 5-9
- Mature size
- 6-8 ft
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Pollination
- Cone panicles feed bees; a NATIVE hydrangea
- Bloom season
- May - July (white cones aging to pink-rose)
- Harvest season
- Dry the cones for arrangements
Hydrangea · Growing & propagation
Growing hydrangea
Light, water, soil, propagation and the season’s jobs.
Hydrangea merges several types whose light, water and soil needs differ — the care groups and the growing playbook carry what applies to each.
Hydrangea · Calculators & field guides
A little help in the garden.
Calculators for the figures. Field guides for the hands-on work.
Hydrangea · Yearly calendar
The hydrangea year, month by month
What hydrangea asks for, month by month.
No fixed season calendar for hydrangea — its care follows conditions, not the calendar.
Hydrangea · Ecology & uses
Ecology & uses
What it does for the garden, and what it is grown for.
Hydrangea in the garden system
Attracts- Bees
Moisture- Facultative / average
Deer- Browsed
Protect young plants
- Juglone
- Hydrangea is sensitive to juglone
The toxin exuded by black walnut, butternut, and their relatives. Keep it 50+ ft from any walnut or hickory, or its leaves will yellow, wilt, and die back for no obvious reason.
What hydrangea is grown for
! Some parts toxic — see notesToxic to dogs, cats and horses (ASPCA; cyanogenic glycoside) — usually vomiting, depression and diarrhoea rather than true cyanide poisoning, which is rare.
Edibility, identification, and traditional-use notes here are general reference — not medical or veterinary advice, and not a claim that any plant treats or prevents anything. Medicinal ratings record how strongly a plant features in herbal tradition, nothing more. Never eat or dose a plant you have not positively identified. More on how to use this library.
Hydrangea · Varieties & cultivars
Choosing a hydrangea variety
Match the plant to your climate, season and available space.
Compare hardiness, mature size, growth habit, days to maturity and intended use in the seller’s variety description. Where this guide covers several plant types, start with the type you want to grow, then choose a variety for your season and space.
Sources & plant identity
Know what you’re growing.
See where the knowledge comes from.
Hydrangea
The plant, at a glance.
- Plant family
- Hydrangeaceae
- Growth habit
- Perennial
- Invasive risk
- Low
Every garden is different.
Hardiness, size and timing vary with your cultivar, soil and climate.
Rooted in research.
University extension research, brought together with hands-on growing experience at Story Thyme Farms.
Explore Hydrangea’s sources3 reference links
for Hydrangea
for Hydrangea
Research from these sources
Publisher marks identify sources, not sponsorship or endorsement.
Questions
Hydrangea questions, answered straight.
Is hydrangea safe for kids and pets?
With care. Toxic to dogs, cats and horses (ASPCA; cyanogenic glycoside) — usually vomiting, depression and diarrhoea rather than true cyanide poisoning, which is rare. Site it accordingly if children or pets roam the garden. This is general reference, not medical or veterinary advice — call a vet or poison control if something has actually been eaten.
Elsewhere
Where hydrangea sits in the library.
Sunflower
Zinnia
Peony
Daylily