Its probably not known yet since they are newer to the market.

I can definitely tell you they lack the vigor of the other H. paniculata but its still a panciculata!

My opinion is if you want them to standout on their own do 4' if you want them to blend in together go 3' but nothing less.

If you where in a higher zone or had perfect growing conditions I wouldn't hesitate to tack on 1' to those estimates.

Here is an idea of size...these were planted last year and as you can see they have really taken off this spring. I cant wait to see them when in bloom. These stand about 4ft and show no signs of slowing down.

Here is a link that might be useful: little lime

kellyleeann- your photos are titled "Limelight1" and "Limelight2."
Just verifying that they are in fact Little Lime's?

Cearbhaill-
These are in fact little lime's. After posting the pictures I wondered if that would cause confusion.

Those are some densely branched plants. Did you prune them?

Mine are half the size of yours after a year.

whaas-
These were pruned down to about a 2ft by 2ft back in the fall, but not by choice. We had the english schip laurels in the background pruned and the landscapers decide to prune everything including my little limes. They looked horrible!!! I would have loved to had the dried flowers for fall interest, but that didn't happen.
I have attached another picture that shows some little limes that were planted very early this spring. You can defiantly tell the difference in 1 years full season of growth. The 3 plants from right to left are on their 2nd year of growth while the plants further to the left were just planted around 3 months ago. I wish that I would have planted them all last year, but it can get quite expensive when you purchase that many at once. We are in a new build home so the landscaping was very minimal at best.

Here is a link that might be useful: 1st year compared to 2nd year

They look very healthy. Please post again when they bloom!

Here is an update on my Little Lime's. They are doing very well as you can see and will be in full flower stage by the end of this month. When standing next to the plant in the second photo, the height of this plant reaches my chin, and I am 5'6. They are filling out very well and hopefully have reached their maximum growing size. To the left of the plants in picture 3 are 3 smaller little limes that I planted in the fall of 2011. This is their first full spring/summer growth and it will take them till next year to catch up to the others. Once they match the others, this should be a beautiful sight!!! I will post new pictures once everything has fully flowered out. What a beautiful choice in opinion. Thanks for looking.

Here is a link that might be useful: Little Lime's

Awesome pictures, Kelly. These are so much tidier looking than regular Limelights (much more practical for most gardens), and I've found that the foliage is a bit darker too - arguably a better contrast between it and the blooms. I'm sure this is the real full size that most people would like to see their shrub border specimens get, unless you're going for the 8' tall hedge, etc.

Here is some updated photos of my little limes. They have really done well. Big beautiful flowers and a great looking round plant shape. I have been having a problems with deer as you can see the results on the plant on the left side of the stair-rail. Most of the blooms on the front side and bottom are missing.
This is the first year that I have cut them and brought them in for fresh flower arrangements. They are so lovely, I even took some to a neighbor for a baby shower center piece!
Cant say enough good things about these big beautiful plant, and all my neighbors want to know what they are!!

Here are the rest of my pictures.

Here is a link that might be useful: Little Lime's

Mine are still coming along from a bloom perspective. I should have good photos in 2 weeks or so.

Mine are approaching 3' tall. Planted as a loosely rooted 1 gallon plant last spring.

kellyleann, whaas and anyone else with photos of little lime hydrangeas... Will you please share your photos, both past and recent pictures... And your experience with growing them. I live in Southern California and I had plans to plant full size Limelight hydrangeas... Until I was told that may not be a wise idea through insightful limelight growers on Gardenweb. So now I'm turning my attention to the Little Limes in the hopes they will grow to the size and behave the way I need. How far from a house wall do you figure I need to plant them?

How quickly will they grow? If I want a hedge of Little Limes... How far apart should I plant them?

Do these variety get some what cream or white flowers? Or do they just stay green? Do they turn pink-ish in the fall? Some of the pics are deleted and I understand it's an old post but I would really appreciate it if you could post an update of your little limes please!

The flowers are more cream colored than one might imagine, especially in the sun. They definitely start out with a greenish hue, but it doesn't take long for the cream with pinkish edges to appear. Most panicle hydrangea is full-on pink by Fall. I have a pic of mine from last summer but I'm not sure where it is. It hits the full 5x5' now and stays pruned to about 3' over Winter.

Limelight and Little Lime's blooms start lime green and exposure to the sun turns the blooms white-ish. The more sun, the faster they change to white. My LL is in full bright shade and it stays lime green with no change to white. So it goes from lime green to green-pink ish and then to brown. Each of these green-white-pink-brown color changes takes several weeks, perhaps a month sometimes. So, yes, you get to pink in the Fall. I detected mine's change to pink late last year (probably due to lack of sun)... somewhere around October-November but it may happen earlier north of me.

Little Lime's white is probably more "creamy" or an off white while Limelight is more "pure" white. It may be best to call plant nurseries to see who carries them in bloom... so you can "see" what I am trying to say.

I have the space with sun from 9:30 am - 3:30 pm and I am hoping for a nice white, I don't mind the green but I was really hoping for cream/white... so little space with so many options :) I appreciate the feedback!

I'm no longer a fan of little lime. They flopped for 5 straight years. The original is much sturdier but it is an extremely vigorous growing. Mine wanted 6' of space within 5 years.

summer sweet is a slightly different look but its one of if not the best paniculata out there. Nice creamy white early changing to pink changing to a nice vibrant burgundy. Very very sturdy. Growth rate is I between little lime and limelight.

Thanks for the comment Whaas. I am always glad to see others' experience with plants. LL always looked in photos a bit more weepy than I prefer, but you are the first person who has commented on it in person.

Roxana, if you want more white and less green, choose one of the small varieties that turns white faster and remains white longer. Little Lamb, White Diamond, and Dharuma are three examples that spend less time in the chartreuse phase and more time with white flowers but are in the same general size range as Little Lime.

Hey Luis, I'm also in 8a, do you have yours in total shade? I just gave one to my mother in law for Mother's Day and we are trying to find the best place for it. And the pics look really good!! Great thread to follow!!

Yes but I call it "bright shade" instead because it is not dense shade. The plant is on the north-facing walls of the house and the eves provide shade all year around. The sunlight never strikes the plant directly but reaches maybe as close as a 1' away or maybe slightly less.

The little limes on the upper level were planted spring 2014 as tiny twigs, and are now over 5' tall. I pruned them back to about 2 1/2' this March. The plants in the foreground were planted spring 2015 as twigs, and are a little over 3'.

Wow Gunvy0407. To the right of the little lion, is that 1 little lime or do you have 2 in that space?

Do you cut the flower off to the first bud once it is finished blooming? I did this fall, and I was wondering if this was correct. I left the old wood and just cut to the first little bud. This is their first year in my garden.

Yes, laliec, on a Little Lime that doesn't need size control, just prune off the spent blossoms if you don't want them for winter interest. Hydrangea paniculatas like Little Lime will form new buds in the spring for next year's blooms regardless of whether you prune them or not. If in future years as it gets larger, if you want to reduce the size, prune it back more, but on a new plant, you want to let it get settled for a few years before harder pruning (if you want to do that - it isn't ever required.)

I like the brown flowers to contrast with snow and evergreens, so I leave the deadheading of old blooms until early spring around the time the snow is melting.

Thank you for your expertise! I have been wondering this for a while, and you really helped me understand my Little Limes more.

My Little Limelight are not growing much. They bloomed last year but they are scrawny and maybe 2ft. tall. How often should I water them? I wanted them to reach at least 4ft. tall & wide.

Krissay, Where are you located? Are they mulched? How long have they been in place? If they were newly planted last year, they are working on growing roots and settling in so they have enough root structure to grow above ground. They will grow more above ground over the next years to reach size.

”How often should I water them?” That depends on where you are and temperatures and how much natural precipitation you’ve had and soil type and if they are mulched and . . . etc. The easiest way to determine if they need watering is to stick your fingers down several inches into the soil and feel how moist it is. The goal on a new plant like this is moist soil, not dry and not soggy soil. When you water, water slowly over a longer time period so that the water sinks in deeply. That encourages the roots to grow deeply, making the plants more resistant to future dry spells. Before watering again, wait until the soil is only very slightly moist. Be sure to check the original potting soil and the native garden soil around the original root ball. Mulch such as shredded bark will also help maintain more even moisture levels and keep soil temperatures more even as well as reduce weeds.

Where I am, I watered my panicled hydrangeas (the species of which LL is one) for the first three years only as needed when I checked the soil. They haven’t been watered since and are now almost 10 years old, even when we had a 6 week spell of almost no precipitation a couple of summers ago. But I am in northern New England, a location where temperatures are far more moderate than in most parts of the country, and usually we get regular rain.

“My LL are not growing much.” There is an old satin Gardening that the first year they sleep, the next they creep, and the third they leap, and for shrubs, it may take a bit longer. I always view gardening as a much needed (for me) life lesson in patience.

thanks for the advice. I live in NW Indiana 30 minutes from Chicago. They are not mulched, we have stone in the landscaping and this will be their 3rd summer at our home. I have 5 across the front they all came back except one, it is just sticks with leaves forming on the bottom?

I loved my limelight hydrangeas at my old place and wanted the same look at my new place but without the height and girth. So I planted Little Lime around my deck. However, with their third season, mine are now stretching up to 7' tall. Yikes! I will be pruning hard this fall. Hydrangeas do love the Northwest!

The real McCoy (Limelight) would be around 10' plus!

I am looking for something around 5-6' tall. Should I go with a Little Lime and hope it gets up to that size or a Limelight and have to prune it to keep it smaller? Are there ways to shape the Little Lime to encourage bigger growth?

Go for the little Lime. Trying to keep a regular Limelight below 6’ would be frustrating.

Thanks!