Growing and propagating hydrangeas

Hydrangeas are an ornamental plant great for creating isolated groups, for decorating border elements, at home or on a lawn. In the early years, young plants are not very decorative, so low-flowering plants (forsythia) or other plants can be planted with them.

Place and soil for growing hydrangeas

Soil rich in humus, loose with air and water permeability, moderately moist. Soil pH should be within 5.5. The ideal soil mixture for growing hydrangeas will be a mixture of leafy and soddy soil, peat, sand and humus, taken in equal proportions. The change is easy to observe: if the hydrangea flowers begin to change color to pink, then the soil is slightly alkaline, if blue, then the soil is acidic.
Based on this, the earth can be maintained at the right pH for plants. Fertilizers such as ammonium sulfate, aluminum sulfate (1 tablespoon per 5 liters of water) or potassium chloride are suitable for soil acidification.

If the soil is heavy, then when planting young seedlings, add some coarse sand. Plants do not respond well to calcareous soil.

Mulching hydrangea bushes with peat, compost or pine needles favorably affects their development.

Hydrangeas need a sunny or slightly shaded area, not open, otherwise the inflorescences begin to become smaller, growth slows down, and the soil dries out. The upper part of the plants can get into the sun, and the base itself remains in the shade. Do not plant hydrangeas under shrubs or near trees, as the plant's root system will always need moisture and nutrition, which will take the roots of the trees.

Planting hydrangeas

If a hydrangea seedling with a strong root system, then it can be planted in September, if not, then in late spring.

Do not fertilize the ground with ashes before planting hydrangeas. Introduce peat with sand or soil with needles. Prepare planting holes 50 × 50 cm, make drainage. Fill the pits with soil and apply Kemira or Acid Plus acidifier fertilizer with alkaline soil. Pour and mulch with peat or sawdust to preserve moisture with a layer of 10 cm. Over the summer, loosen the mulch 2 times.

Basic tips for planting hydrangeas

Before planting hydrangeas, mineral and organic fertilizers are applied to the soil.

To get a large hydrangea bush, plant a seedling that is already 4-5 years old, making a hole 35-40 cm deep and 50-70 cm wide.

For frequent plantings, hydrangeas () are planted in holes with a distance of 0.7-1 m between them, but after a few years thinning pruning is carried out.

Hydrangea bushes are planted, both in spring and autumn, if there are no severe winters in the region.

During spring planting, hydrangeas shorten the roots of seedlings and cut off annual shoots, leaving 3-4 pairs of buds. After planting, the bushes are watered, and a little later, when water is absorbed, they are mulched with peat with a layer of 6-8 cm.

In the fall, fertilize the hydrangea with a complex mineral fertilizer, and in the spring - with urea at the rate of 20 g per bucket of water (2-3 buckets of fertilizer per adult bush).

Moderate application of slurry has a good effect on the development of inflorescences, but with an excess of severity of inflorescences, branches can break off.

A very important event for an ornamental shrub. The flowering of hydrangeas begins 2-3 years after planting, if it began earlier, then cut off all the inflorescences without regret so that all the forces of the plant go to the development of the bush. Carry out rejuvenating pruning ("") of adult bushes, do not be afraid, flowering will be in the same summer.

The main reasons why hydrangeas do not take root

The main reason is soil with unfavorable properties: chernozem, alkaline or manure-humus soil. Alkaline soil with a pH of 8.0-9.0 contains a large amount of lime and a low content of iron, which can cause leaf chlorosis. In this case, the plants need to be fertilized with a solution of ferrous sulfate based on a bucket of water 5-6 g of the drug.

Watering hydrangeas with hard water is not allowed.

If you are growing hydrangeas that bloom on the shoots of the current year, then pruning should not be done during the growing season.

Care and feeding of garden hydrangea

In the spring, do not rush to remove the shelter.

Water 1 time if it rained for a week and 2 times in dry weather, pouring 30-50 liters of soft water under each adult plant (rain or settled tap water with the infrequent addition of vinegar or lemon juice to prevent leaf chlorosis). If the soil was mulched with peat, then you can water it abundantly once a month.

Cut the faded inflorescences with a garden pruner, as flowering begins at the base of a blooming brush, and when peeling off the inflorescences, you can accidentally touch the top of the branch and peel off the buds.

Under the bushes of plants do not remove fallen leaves. Bring in pine needles. Before flowering, apply Kemira-universal fertilizer.

Early growth under the hydrangea bushes, add 30-35 g of sulfuric potassium, 30-40 g of superphosphate, 20-25 g of urea per 1 sq.m.

When budding add 40-45 g of sulfuric potassium and 60-80 g of superphosphate per 1 sq.m.

In the last days of August apply 15-20 kg of compost or rotted manure under each plant.

autumn in dry weather, water the hydrangea bushes abundantly, then the plants will better tolerate frosts. Treat the bushes with Bordeaux mixture. In mid-October, spud the bushes to a height of 30 cm. From above, you can cover with agrospan. In early November, bend the hydrangea branches to the ground and cover with spruce branches or dry leaves. Place the box on top.

Hydrangea cuttings

In general, pruning of hydrangeas that bloom on the shoots of the current year is carried out before sap flow. However, if you want to cut hydrangea bushes in the future, then prune at the beginning of sap flow, before bud break, for their better rooting (rooting rate is about 70%). With this method of grafting (lignified cuttings), the planting material is of better quality.

So, in spring, in the first half of April you saw that the buds of plants began to develop, they swelled a little, which means you can cut the bushes for cuttings. tree hydrangea begins development after hibernation faster than paniculate, therefore, pruning of tree hydrangea should be done earlier. Cut off the shoots, leaving 3-4 buds on them. From the resulting branches, cut the cuttings so that each of them has 2 knots, making an oblique cut under the lower kidney, and a straight cut above the upper one, at a distance of 2-3 cm from it. After that, plant the resulting cuttings in a greenhouse in peat-sandy soil, deepening the lower bud by 3 cm, cover with polyethylene and pour abundantly. Then water the cuttings every day depending on the dryness of the soil.

Panicle hydrangea cuttings goes a little differently. Trim last year's shoots to a third of the length. From the cut branches, cut the cuttings according to the tree-like pattern and plant them in the greenhouse in the same way. Plant rooted cuttings in the summer in open ground.