How to Plant a Hydrangea Hedge: 9 Pro Recommendations
To brighten the border, create a little privacy, and elevate the bloom appeal in your landscape, now is the time to plan a hydrangea hedge. The blooming shrubs offer bold seasonal color, a leafy backdrop, and interest that persists into the cool season. For months of beauty and a stellar mass planting, explore how to create a hydrangea hedge with gardening expert Katherine Rowe.
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Hydrangeas offer spectacular summertime blooms, deep green foliage, and eye-catching stature, and they can grow as gorgeous hedges! They’re also strong, easy-care garden performers across varying climates and conditions.
Hydrangeas offer numerous qualities as blooming hedges, including functionality like privacy and screening or defining a space. They also bring a breathtaking show of color and multiseason appeal. Some have colorful fall foliage, color-transitioning blooms, and dried flower heads that persist into winter.
Enjoy the robust flowering shrubs as a head-turning hedge with the right placement and selection. With so many sizes and shades available, the versatile growers are ready to brighten various garden scales.
Determine Your Type of Hedge
Developing a hydrangea hedge is straightforward, with a few primary considerations to set the arrangement up for success. The first step is to decide what type of hedge best fits your landscape.
Single Specimen
Whether your garden is large or small, planting en masse brings impact and harmony to a space. It lets the plant shine with more heft than it might as a single planting. When we envision a hydrangea hedge, we usually picture a row of the same hydrangea. Using the same species brings consistent visual interest, weight, and texture to any garden style.
Planting in groups is one of the easiest ways to create unity in the landscape through repetition. Repeated plant sequences impact the visual appeal of space, help organize the overall experience, and lend a sense of balance. Repeating the same plant anchors the landscape and a backdrop for embellishments.
Low-Growing Border/Foundation
Hydrangea options abound for situations that warrant lower growing or more compact selections. If you want to line a low fence, soften the front of the border, or define a bed, employ those that reach three to four feet, depending on your scale. We’ll outline a few solid options later, but there are lots of varieties that fulfill the lower-growing role.
Privacy Screen
A privacy hedge or screen may call for larger, taller hydrangea cultivars. Screens cover anything utilitarian, like heating and air units, utility boxes, or garbage can storage. They may include a neighbor’s driveway, fence line, or the underside of a porch. Things that take away from the overall visual appeal of a space benefit from a well-planted buffer.
Aside from hiding anything unsightly, flowering shrubs as screens add beauty and enhance privacy. Use them to define spaces and sculpt the view.
Mixed Plantings
The easygoing shrubs blend seamlessly in a mixed arrangement, like a hedgerow dotted with evergreens for all-season interest. They also pair with roses and perennials like hosta, heuchera, and daffodils that form a low-growing base.
Mixed evergreen hedges give structure and variation to the garden year-round and stand out in winter when deciduous hydrangea form is more exposed. Rely on staple, hardy evergreens like boxwood, holly, osmanthus, and yew to harmonize with deciduous growers.
In the right garden location, roses and hydrangeas grow together to create a spectacular bloom display. They have similar cultural requirements regarding water and soil, paying close attention to overlapping light needs for the right pairings.
Find the Right Spot
While easygoing, the shrubs rely on key cultural conditions to thrive. Sun exposure is a primary factor in site selection.
Some hydrangeas tolerate more sun, with morning sun and afternoon shade offering ideal conditions for many varieties. Depending on the sun’s intensity, others grow best in partial to full shade and filtered light. Hydrangeas tolerate more sun in cool climates if there’s ample water. In hot climates, they grow best in partial shade with protection from direct sun – especially afternoon sun.
Gauging your site’s sunlight as it moves through the day is a good measure of how your selection will perform. It also helps hone in on which type to grow. Panicle hydrangeas tolerate the most sun (and they are the most cold-hardy), while bigleaf types may need more shade, depending on the climate.
Choose the Best Hydrangea for Hedges
Ah, the fun part! Take your pick among mopheads, lacecaps, or pyramidal blooms in colors from creamy white to periwinkle to deep rose. Select by mature size for your hedgerow type and by your favorite color. Many possess color-changing attributes as blooms mature from their original shade to dusky rose or green and, finally, tawny. Reblooming varieties bring an extended flowering time of summer through frost.
Use your USDA hardiness zone to choose types overwinter in your growing area. Gardeners in areas with cold winters need winter-hardy hydrangeas, while warm climates have numerous options, but with added attention to placement due to heat and humidity.
In areas with frigid winters, opt for panicle and smooth hydrangeas. These bloom on new wood, so there won’t be winter bud damage, and they are exceptionally cold-hardy down to zone 3. We have specific variety recommendations below.
Follow Spacing Guidelines
The vigorous growers need plenty of airflow between surrounding plants and walls. For best air circulation, space them according to the variety’s mature width and recommended spacing.
When growing a dense planting, ensure faster infill by planting at the minimum spacing requirement. For a bit more room and less investment in quantity, space plants according to the maximum recommendation. Beyond that maximum, you may have gaps in the hedge. This spacing allows for mature growth, and plants will touch but won’t be overcrowded.
‘Incrediball,’ for example, needs a recommended spacing of four to five feet. For some overlap and a full look, opt for four feet between centers. Go for five feet from center to center for a bit more room.
Opt for a straight line or stagger the row into two lines (bumping out every other shrub), maintaining spacing between centers.
Prepare the Site
A little site preparation goes a long way toward healthy establishment. You’ll want to start with a clean, weed and grass-free planting area.
Hydrangeas prefer organically rich, well-draining soils with medium moisture (think humusy woodland floor). Soil pH (acidic, neutral, or alkaline) influences blue or pink bloom color in some species like bigleaf (H. macrophylla) and mountain (H. serrata). You can alter soil pH with amendments in fall or late winter before flowering.
A soil test helps determine pH levels and how much you’ll need to adjust them. Going too far in either direction, high acidity or alkalinity, leads to unhealthy growing situations. Soils have trouble delivering nutrients to plants in extremes on either end of the spectrum.
Blue blooms need acidic soils with a pH less than 6.0. Add aluminum sulfate or pine straw, coffee grounds, and decaying oak leaves to the surrounding soil to increase acidity.
Pink blooms occur in slightly acidic to alkaline soils with pH levels above 6.0. To achieve pinker tones, add garden lime or wood ashes to the soil. A neutral soil yields a purplish-mauve bloom.
For poor soils like clay and sand, generously add composted organic material to improve aeration, moisture retention, drainage, and nutrition. Spread a generous three to six-inch layer over the entire planting area.
Install the Hydrangea Hedge
Determine if your hedge is to be linear or curved. You may use stakes and twine to create a straight line or a hose to form organic curves. Landscape marking paint works well. Measure the area between plants as you go or with stones/markers or paint in advance for uniform spacing.
Fall and spring are the best times for planting, as the mild conditions pose the least stress on new plants as they develop roots. For fall additions, hold off on fertilizing at planting time. The shrubs enter winter dormancy to conserve energy, and fertilizer counters this by encouraging new growth. Wait until spring to fertilize for the growing season.
To install each plant, dig a rough hole twice the size of the nursery pot. Gently loosen any tightly packed roots and place the specimen in the hole. Hydrangeas benefit from a level crown rather than being planted too high or too low for best growth and flowering. Ensure the crown (where the base of the stems meets the roots) is at soil level when tucking plants in.
Water Through Frost
Water new plants thoroughly and at their base to avoid splashing the leaves and spreading fungal and bacterial diseases. Drip irrigation, soaker hoses, or direct hand watering accomplish this. Use spray heads or overhead irrigation early in the day so plants have a chance to dry out.
About one inch of water per week is sufficient for most hydrangeas, with more during hot or dry spells. Water until frost to strengthen them for winter dormancy.
Water in the morning (preferable) or evening to retain the most moisture before evaporation. Watering deeply, rather than frequently and shallowly, is best for root growth and moisture uptake.
Maintain
Hydrangeas are carefree and unfussy, with low maintenance requirements. As part of regular maintenance:
- Mulch generously around roots with pine bark, pine straw, compost, or leaf litter
- Keep hydrangeas watered until the ground freezes (about one inch per week)
- Keep them out of drying winter winds or protect them in frigid conditions (screening, extra leaf coverage, or mulch)
They benefit from compost amendments each fall or spring. As heavy bloomers, they appreciate a spring fertilizer application if soils lack nutrition. Look for an organic granular slow-release high in phosphorous, like 10-30-10, to promote growth and flowering.
Avoid overfertilizing, as too much nitrogen produces leafy growth with less flowering. Stop fertilizing in late summer as plants stop actively growing and prepare for winter dormancy.
Prune
Your hydrangeas may not need much pruning, but you can shape them for size and new growth, especially for those that bloom on new wood. Prune out dead, weak, or winter-damaged stems in late winter or early spring.
Hydrangeas bloom either on old wood (the previous year’s growth) or new wood (the current year’s growth). Some selections bloom on both new and old wood for flowers galore all season. Knowing this old wood/new wood bloom trait is helpful for pruning.
Hydrangeas that bloom on old wood set their buds for the next season in late summer and early fall. Those that bloom on new wood develop buds in the spring closer to flowering.
Avoid pruning old wood bloomers in the fall to retain buds. If you choose to prune them for shaping, do so immediately after they finish flowering. Trim new-wood selections in late winter for spring’s new growth and budding.
For repeat bloomers, deadhead spent flowers to promote continued flowering. Stop deadheading in late summer/early fall to allow flowerheads to remain for continued seasonal interest.
Hydrangeas That Make Good Hedges
Between pinks, blues, and whites in swirling shades and sizes, there’s no shortage of gorgeous options. Reblooming selections offer a long bloom season that lasts into fall, and some boast autumnal foliage in golds, deep reds, and purple.
‘Big Daddy’
botanical name Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Big Daddy’ | |
sun requirements Partial to full shade | |
height 5-6’ | |
hardiness zones 6-9 |
‘Big Daddy’ delights with massive mophead blooms in blue or pink depending on soil acidity (blue) and alkalinity (pink). Glossy, large leaves complement the impressive blooms with a lush backdrop.
‘Big Daddy’ blooms on old and new wood, so there’s an early season flush of blooms from last year’s stems and continued flowering from buds set on fresh growth. The vigorous producer reblooms throughout summer until fall for a long-lasting display.
‘Endless Summer® The Original’
botanical name Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Bailmer’ | |
sun requirements Partial to full shade | |
height 3-4’ | |
hardiness zones 4-9 |
‘Endless Summer®’ features big, bold blooms in rich blues and pinks with classic mophead flower clusters. The Original’ Endless Summer® is the first bred to bloom on both old and new wood, offering increased flowering, cold hardiness, and reblooming from early summer to frost.
The large, rounded flowers are cool blue or delicate pink, depending on the soil pH. The rounded flowers in large clusters are rich, cool blue or delicate pink. The big, glossy leaves turn burgundy red in fall. Small fruit capsules emerge after flowering, and flowers left on the plant persist in dried form into winter.
‘Limelight’ and Cultivars
botanical name Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’ | |
sun requirements Full sun to partial shade | |
height 6-8’ | |
hardiness zones 3-9 |
‘Limelight’ is an award-winning, favorite panicle cultivar that brings a big show to the mid-summer garden with lasting interest into fall. Massive pyramidal blooms in creamy white and chartreuse age to pink and dusky rose as the season progresses.
‘Limelight’ is a reliable bloomer and durable garden performer. As a panicle hydrangea, it tolerates more sun exposure than other varieties, even in southern climates, but still appreciates afternoon shade in warm regions.
If there’s a drawback to ‘Limelight’s’ stature, it’s the heavy blooms weighing stems down. ‘Limelight Prime’ offers improvements over the original. Plants grow four to six feet tall with sturdier stems to hold the weighty blooms upright. Flowers emerge earlier in the season for a long-lasting bloom time, beginning greenish-white and maturing to rich pinks and reds for vibrant color.
For a more compact grower, opt for ‘Little Lime’. Robust blooms top strong stems that resist drooping. ‘Little Lime’ reaches three to five feet tall. It has the same beautiful ‘Limelight’ green and ivory flowers that transition to pink hues and last well into fall.
‘Quick Fire’
botanical name Hydrangea paniculata ‘Quick Fire’ | |
sun requirements Full sun to partial shade | |
height 6-8’ | |
hardiness zones 3-8 |
The color-changing lacecaps of ‘Quick Fire’ are like magic. Flowers emerge bright white and become pink in summer, eventually aging to deep rose and red in autumn.
Foliage turns gold and purple-red before dropping for winter. This color-twisting panicle hydrangea is one of the earliest varieties to bloom, meaning a long season of colorful flowers and foliage in your hedge.
‘Quick Fire’ blooms on new wood, so cold winters won’t impact developing buds. Prune plants back by one-third in late winter to rejuvenate growth and promote flowering on sturdy stems.
‘Incrediball®’
botanical name Hydrangea arborescens ‘Incrediball®’ | |
sun requirements Full sun to partial shade | |
height 4-5’ | |
hardiness zones 3-9 |
‘IncrediballⓇ’ is a smooth hydrangea from Proven Winners that is perfect for hedges. It produces globes in white and chartreuse. With age, the flowers transition from bright white to soft green.
‘Incrediball®’ is a cultivar of the native species. It features strong stems and giant blooms in midsummer that persist through frost.
For an easy-care addition in silvery pink, look to ‘Incrediball® Blush.’ Sturdy stems hold enormous blooms in delicate blush pink that mature to deep pink and green in the fall. The rebloomer produces flowers from early summer until frost.
‘Seaside Serenade® Bar Harbor’
botanical name Hydrangea arborescens ‘SMHAMWM’ | |
sun requirements Partial shade | |
height 3-4’ | |
hardiness zones 3-9 |
‘Seaside Serenade® Bar Harbor’ is a compact selection with characteristic dome-shaped mophead blooms. The rounds reach nearly ten inches on sturdy, upright stems.
‘Bar Harbor’ bears loads of creamy white and green flowers. With full, leafy forms, the showy growers work well in low borders.