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bellarosazone5

Bloomstruck

9 years ago

Does anyone know if you can grow hydrangea, bloomstruck, in a western exposure? just wondering..

Comments (6)

  • 9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    In warm locations like mine, it is very difficult to grow mophead hydrangeas in a western exposure, especially if they will get hit with afternoon sun in the summer months. You in Z5 are not as warm but, in the west side, it would be best to make sure that the leaves will get afternoon shade, little winds and plenty of moisture during the summer. Temps can also get hot in the summer when sunlight bounces off the house's walls and indirectly hit plants so inspect the location well. All that can be troublesome, especially for mopheads that typically like/need lots of water.

    However, things are relative. On the west side of my house, I grew a mac with golden foliage for several years. It was actually planted on the east side of a small pine tree that was growing close to the house so, the plant was both, on the west side of the house and on the east side of the small pine tree that provided it with afternoon shade. There was probably a 2-3' distance from the house to the pine tree. It worked fine for me. Eventually though, I moved it. I usually give hydrangeas more water than I give the other shrubs and, this location required that I water the plant by hand (no drip irrigation there). As you can suspect, after a few years, I grew tired of doing that just for one plant.

    So, I feel that west is always hard for camellias, azaleas and hydrangeas so I would not recommend it here but, you being in Zone 5, maybe... if you know that it will get afternoon shade, if direct and indirect summer sunlight is not intense in that location, if the spot does not get too hot or windy in the summer and if you can appropriately water the plant there. .

    If you decide to try, consider first growing it in a container so it can be easily moved. Keep it in the container for 1-2 years in the location you are considering... to see if that location 'works'. If not then just move the pot. If the plant likes the spot, consider winter protecting to get more reliable blooms.

  • 9 years ago

    Only if there is shade IME. If they get afternoon sunlight, the combination of hot temperatures and sun are likely to leave you with an unhappy looking plant.

  • 9 years ago

    Hmmmm..I have a few Bloomstruck hydrangeas that I planted in other shady parts of the yard. Some are budding up slightly, but others nothing. Should I assume that they are dead? It's probably too early to really expect anything, right?

  • 9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Give them more time. They may not be dead and may grow back from the crown. While
    down here in the South you could make a case for being dead, I would hesitate
    to do the same north of me in early April. As a guide, leave the stems alone until
    mid-to-late May and then prune them to the ground if they have not
    leafed out.

  • 9 years ago

    I would give them at the very least 6-8 weeks in my zone 5a. Shade can slow the soil thawing and sometimes one plant will die back to the snow line and need to resprout from roots. Even within one garden there are microclimates. For instance in my garden I had some reticulated iris that bloomed the last week of February and others, several feet away, but the same species and same cultivar are blooming now, a bit over 6 weeks later. So your plants of the same kind in different parts of your garden may wake up at different times.

  • 9 years ago

    I checked them over the weekend and I can see the buds (or leaves) swelling up on all of them except one. He better catch up - or else! LOL.