Thanks for the input DTD....very helpful.

Oh...what's the growth rate and size at maturity? Unfortunately I don't know the cultivar.... it was without that info on the tag. Hope it's Snowflake but I LOVE my pruning/shaping so shouldn't be a problem if it's not.

In NE z6 oakleaf could take almost any position except one-with not good drainage, where she may die in a matter of days or years, but will die nevertheless.
Generaly oakleaf don't need any pruning (mother nature will do it for you), and healthy speciman (if left alone) could reach 8-10'h x 6-8'w.

Yes, that's about the size of some of my older ones - well, 6 to 8 feet max, I think. Maybe if I watered them, they'd be taller. Mine are all plain old "straight species" as far as I know. I rarely prune mine, just removing the flowering stem ends in late winter if they get too ratty looking.

They DO tend to run, so are not the best candidates for tightly packed mixed borders. And, one of mine (in the most shade) sends up runners in a brick path - including some quite far from the parent plant - like 10' away. I'm about 90% sure these are not seedlings, but actual runners; there is usually a good sized root (about 2x the width of a pencil) under them.

The volunteers are always a hit at local plant sales and at swaps, so I'm not complaining.

Where the heck did my post from early this morning go?? Sheesh.......

George is it? Thanks for the additional info...I'd read that online about the drainage...that we have in spades.

DTD....runners eh? OK...I know where it's going then. Thanks again.

Are you saying the runners sprout offspring? ?

Who, me?

I'm saying that they reproduce, and that they spread - clumps get wide, babies pop up 10' away, and I don't think those are seedlings, but they might be. I have several big OHs, so there definitely could be pollination going on. Or maybe voles carry bits of root around, who knows!

Nan, I'm puzzled as well about OH runners. They do root by ground layering, clumps get wide, but runners? Hmm... even H.petiolaris don't have a runners in a traditional sense of the word.

Some hydrangeas, in particular H. arborescens, H. aspera sargentiana and H. involucrata 'Hortensis', are prone to sucker, i.e. they send off new growth below ground spontaneously, and these underground shoots start to grow in subsidiary plants around the periphery of the original shrub. Once again, a large area can become coverewd with identical plants which may or may not, be what is wanted. In the southeast USA, where H aborescens is native, extensive plantings are utilized to cover roadside verges. Should the new plants not be required where they arise, they too can like layerings or self layerings be severed and transplanted. "Hydrangeas A Gardeners Guide" by Toni Lawson-Hall and Brian Rothera

So, are you talking about H.arborescens (which is indeed truly stoloniferous plant) or H.quersifolia (which is not, but could self-layer)?

P.S. Unfortunately above statement in regards to H. sargentiana and H. involucrata is not about us, 5-6-7-zoners. I barely could keep H. aspera villosa alive :-(

From Dirr's Manual of Woody Landscape Plants: Size: 4' to 6' (8') in height, spread as wide and wider as it suckers from roots; the more I look the larger the plants that surface. Old specimens in the south reach 10 to 12' and never look back.

He also says it's stoloniforous; however he says fresh seed will germinate easily, so maybe I'm just finding a lot of seedlings. Since I'm not a very tidy gardener, they may be pretty fully developed by the time I spot them, even in the brick path...

One of mine in particular suckers very much like an H. arborescens - I could easily divide off these smaller plants around the main one.

Back to Jant's question, though, Dirr says they always do better with some shade, even in the north. I can't argue with that, although some of mine are fine in sun.

' Dirr says they always do better with some shade, even in the north. I can't argue with that...'

Can't argue either:-))
6 years old, in part shade, no suckers, no seedlings :-)
{{gwi:265842}}

Beautiful, George!

siege of plant envy.