Follow these few steps and your hydrangeas will be happy and vibrant for years to come. Last Updated: September 12, 2020 Water at a rate of 1 inch per week throughout the growing season. If your hydrangeas don’t have many blooms, there are a few possible reasons. Color. Start sprinkling the elemental sulfur about 2 feet (0.6 m) beyond the shrub drip line or outer edge of the shrub. By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. https://www.al.com/living/2013/06/how_do_i_make_my_hrdrangeas_bl.html, https://www.gardenista.com/posts/magic-trick-how-to-make-your-hydrangea-change-color/, http://www.gardenista.com/posts/magic-trick-how-to-make-your-hydrangea-change-color, https://plantcaretoday.com/how-to-make-hydrangeas-turn-blue.html, http://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/colorchange.html, http://www.al.com/living/index.ssf/2013/06/how_do_i_make_my_hrdrangeas_bl.html, http://homeguides.sfgate.com/can-add-soil-deeper-blue-hydrangea-43726.html, mantener el color de las hortensias azules, So behalten deine Hortensien ihre blaue Farbe, conserver la couleur des hortensias bleus, الحفاظ على اللون الأزرق لأزهار الكوبية الزرقاء, consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. Approved. ", "This site always gives good advice. I was so glad to read of all your tips with your lovely illustrated guide. To encourage blue hydrangea flowers, grow the plant in soil that has a pH of 5.2-5.5. Every day at wikiHow, we work hard to give you access to instructions and information that will help you live a better life, whether it's keeping you safer, healthier, or improving your well-being. Sometimes hydrangeas will change color over time as acidity levels in the soil change. Didn't know about the need to lower the phosphate. For pink flowers, the plants need neutral to alkaline soils (pH 6.5 and higher). The best soil & light. Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0 Don’t prune away stems that will bloom. For plush pink or blue flowers, look for macrophylla varieties, also called lacecap or mophead. Garden World | How to Keep a Blue Hydrangea Blue. Watering, pruning, and winter care should be the top of your priorities though. Loam or silt loam soil will require a ¾ pound of elemental sulfur to lower the soil pH in a 25 square foot area by one unit. The main plant was an off color this year, so it will need treated as well. What causes my hydrangeas to turn a faded, washed out color? When you fertilize your shrubs, use a fertilizer that's high in potassium and low in phosphate since it will be more acidic. This is the area where most of the roots grow and absorb water and nutrients. Hydrangeas like partial sun, ideally full sun in the morning, then shade from the hot afternoon rays. Follow these steps to prune hydrangeas correctly. Posts about how to care for written by Pam. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. To determine the pH of your garden... Sunlight and Water. Hydrangeas also benefit from an occasional boost of fertilizer once or twice a year in spring or summer. The more intense the fizzing, the more alkaline the soil. Otherwise, opt for Flower-tone. Sandy or sandy loam soil, on the other hand, will require less than ¼ pound of elemental sulfur to lower the pH by one. Hydrangea Care Guide. Most mopheads bloom in late spring or early summer but make their flower buds the year before you see them. Water is an important factor when you care for hydrangeas. You may be over-fertilizing: two to three applications during a season is usually plenty. Hydrangeas can be tiny or huge! Firstly, cutting back the hydrangea for winter is the best thing to do. This can be done relatively easily by understanding the science behind it and making necessary soil improvements. To obtain a blue hydrangea, aluminum must be present in the soil. Follow these expert tips for hydrangea care—whether they’re in a vase, potted, or in the ground—for beautiful blooms all season long. Feed them with a general-purpose flowering shrub fertilizer in the spring. According to The Old Farmer’s Almanac, acidic soil with 5.2 – 5.5 pH level produces blue colored flowers. Go ahead and tackle pruning hydrangeas that flower on new wood. Therefore, the only way to help the plant develop or maintain a good intense color is by fertilizing it regularly to maintain its general health. Gently loosen the roots, then plant using plenty of rich soil. The lacecap and mophead hydrangeas are especially susceptible to wilting. My three formerly blue hydrangeas are planted with a tarp on the soil and small rocks and pebbles around them and other plants. How to grow hydrangeas ", starts from my blue mop head and they were both pink. Balance in the amount of water given, in pruning them, and in the type of compost used. Endless Summer ® Hydrangeas is a collection of Hydrangea macrophylla perennial shrubs that have the unique ability to re-bloom throughout the spring and summer months, giving more color and visual appeal to your garden for a longer period of time. Desert Rose in Garden. Please consider making a contribution to wikiHow today. Great site! Deeply water 3 times a week to encourage root growth. I will put some to use. You get hydrangeas, but with less hassle. Therefore, if you want to maintain the blue color of the flowers, you will need to monitor the pH level of the soil and take measures to preserve its acidity. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. As the PH in creases, the color will start to turn pink, going through shades of purple and lavender turning shades of pink above PH 6. If you plant more than one type of hydrangea in the garden you can have flowers from April to October. Pink hydrangeas can be turned blue by applying aluminum sulfate to lower the pH and add aluminum to the soil. If your soil is more alkaline, you can lower the pH by applying Soil Acidifier at the rate specified on the package. Don't be tempted to apply a stronger concentration as this can burn the roots. Just do not allow it to touch the plant. It obviously likes its spot in the garden, but now, I would like to have another bush on the left hand side. I have one that is enormous every year, "I always thought aluminum sulfate had to be used. Bigleaf hydrangeas are not only beautiful but among the easiest flowering shrubs you can plant. Another culprit is damage from frost. I loved this blue plant. The lacecap hydrangea requires a rich, well-draining soil--which should remain evenly moist--along with the addition of organic matter (such as manure or compost). Hydrangeas need minimal care in well-drained, fertile soil, and are shade lovers. References If your hydrangea can't quite decide what color it wants to be (a mix of pink and blue) or it's purple, then it's likely your garden soil is quite neutral. All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published. However, some varieties can handle more sun, especially in northern areas. To create this article, volunteer authors worked to edit and improve it over time. ", even though we trim it right back. Alternatively, you can take a sample of your soil to a local gardening center where they will test the pH of the soil for you. This article has been viewed 105,759 times. ", "Needed advice on keeping my hydrangea blue - this told me just how to do this clearly. ", "Very informative. This fertilizer may be labeled as an appropriate fertilizer for azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons. Thanks! Avoid using fertilizers such as bone meal, as this will make the soil more alkaline, undoing all of your hard work. If nothing happens when the vinegar comes in contact with the soil, this means that the soil is either neutral or acidic and is more likely to produce blue hydrangeas. Buds are set in late summer to early fall, so prune prior to this. Gradually the color will shift towards blue. Choose your hydrangea keeping both the height and spread of the mature plant in mind. You can also add a layer of mulch following hydrangea planting. Care of Blue Hydrangea Maintaining Color. ", "Exactly what I needed as this is my first time purchasing hydrangeas and I want them to be blue. Do Not Sell My Personal Information – CA Residents. This includes smooth hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens) and paniclehydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata). My hydrangeas were purchased blue. How to Care for Hydrangeas. ", going down to the nursery today, hopefully to get the solution to turn the flowers beautiful blue again! If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. To learn more about mistakes to avoid when trying to keep your hydrangeas blue, read on! For perennial vines that reach impressive heights, choose climbing hydrangeas. What can I do? The most important thing to having thriving hydrangeas is maintaining a balance in their care. Hydrangeas create a soft yet powerful statement, thanks to their abundance of clustered flowers in delicate hues of blue, pink or white. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Thank you! Taste of Home is America's #1 cooking magazine. Only the macrophylla hydrangeas change color based on soil acidity. Here's a closer look at how to care for hydrangeas, including tips on where and how to plant them. Now all I, "This is the most informative and helpful page l have used to help with gardening problems. wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. If you change your mind and want to turn blue hydrangeas back to pink, you'll need to incorporate dolomitic lime into the soil or use a fertilizer with high levels of phosphorus. Bigleaf and smooth hydrangeas ... Add mulch underneath your hydrangeas to help keep the soil moist and cool. Nikko Blue hydrangea bushes do not require much (if any) pruning, but the main thing that you need to know if you do feel compelled to prune them is that they bloom on old wood. At the final stage, the colors will stay constant, often through the winter if not pruned in the fall. She and her family live in Vermont and enjoy all things food, as well as the beautiful outdoors, game nights, Avengers movies and plenty of maple syrup. wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Hydrangeas like this mophead variety can be a real delight and source of color in your garden, if you know how to care for them. Recut the woody stems at a slant under water. New varieties will bloom repeatedly throughout summer; others will bloom on new growth as well as the old wood as long as they're watered. No, you can use baking soda, but you will need to be patient. Thanks. ". You'll have to water with a slightly acidic water. Hydrangeas add gorgeous flowers and dimension to your garden and landscape. Hydrangea Care While securing a healthy cutting can be a little challenging especially while you wait for it to develop roots, the rest of the process is easy. For those macrophylla / Serrata hydrangeas that flower pink or blue, pink flowers are in alkaline soils and blue in acidic soils. This includes choosing the correct hydrangea for your space, planting, watering, fertilizing, pruning and more. Learn how to care for hydrangeas with these helpful garden hints. My best guess is that the pebbles and brick contain limestone, which is easily dissolved in water and will raise the pH of the soil. You couldn’t find an easier plant to care for than this hardy shrub. How to change the color of hydrangeas Hydrangeas change colors depending on the pH content of the soil. Store bought potted hydrangeas usually languish because a small container on the kitchen table is less than ideal. I moved two, "I have just bought two beautiful blue hydrangeas, planted for a short while, with both starting to go pink. To keep your hydrangeas blue, you'll need to make your soil more acidic. Blue hydrangeas require an acid-based soil with a pH below 5.5. Why Does My Plant Have Brown Tips on the Leaves? % of people told us that this article helped them. Newer cultivars that reflower are also available, which provide color again and again. This is a natural progression for hydrangeas as the blooms age. The exception to this is white or green hydrangeas, which are unique varieties and don't change color. Try to use rainwater as much as possible when watering your plants, because tap water will counteract the acidity and turn your flowers pink. You can also incorporate coffee grounds into the soil when planting a new hydrangea shrub – perhaps ask your local café if you can take some away, they are usually happy to oblige. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/2\/25\/Keep-Blue-Hydrangeas-Blue-Step-1.jpg\/v4-460px-Keep-Blue-Hydrangeas-Blue-Step-1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/2\/25\/Keep-Blue-Hydrangeas-Blue-Step-1.jpg\/aid4812110-v4-728px-Keep-Blue-Hydrangeas-Blue-Step-1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"