On the lookout for this since its introduction, found a gallon at Lowes in early May & 3-gallons later last month, all healthy specimens (newly arrived) in bud & bloom. Captivated by the creams, pinks & celery greens of the flowers, the old & new wood reblooming capacity, the promise of pale yellow-apricot-mauve tones as the blossoms age and the reasonable prices of $17 & $27, initially brought one of the smaller & then two of the larger home to audition for key garden positions. Hydrangeas in the pink range tend to blue here in acidic soil. Reluctance to mess with additives in mixed plantings makes Fantasia additionally appealling, not having turned up reports that it'll blue out. At least, not yet...

Observing these for the last 6-8 weeks, still potted, in various exposures, find the older, larger plants fine in ESE full sun exposure from 10-2 until the temps exceed 90. They don't wilt or burn or lose flower substance even at the 98 high we've hit, being watered well daily, but project a general air of unease at high temps. The younger, smaller plant didn't like that much sun from the get-go, being content in only 2 hours of sun yet still producing new buds & blooms. Like its older siblings, it didn't show obvious signs of sun fatigue. The Forever & Ever brand tag that came with them advises "partial shade" for zones 7-9 and "full sun to partial shade" in zones 5-6. So it looks like the morning sun/afternoon shade rule of thumb applies here for them at both ages. Finding myself unconvinced of hybridizers' claims till proven in this garden leads my reason for trialing new plants. Helpful prior to more permanent planting plus easier on me & the plants.

Since temps higher than the 90's can be anticipated in any given Summer, Fantasia's now become a candidate for spots where the sun shines earlier but not past noonish, opening up new possibilites to explore as the season progresses. Now wondering how little morning sun they may need to happily grow & bloom well. They're all ready to be transferred to larger pots, so will be placed in shade after repotting & advance into greater morning exposure from there, experimenting to find their minimums after determining their maximums.

Sun/shade mix being only one component in trying to find their best garden placement, now looking ahead to Winter weather patterns in various sites, which led to older posts & responses to cold. Springwood_Gardens, read you've grown Fantasia for two Winters now. From your reports at F&E's website & DG, appears Fantasia died back to the ground even in the milder weather year before last, and has been slow to resprout the last two Springs. After the pummeling the garden took this last Winter, perhaps over-cautious at this point, though usually pick plants rated two full zones (to 5a) lower to hedge my bets, since we've dropped to -7 for short periods here over the years. Any details you can add such as initial age of your plants, sun/shade & weather exposure, any protective seasonal measures, would be really helpful & much appreciated. Know you're usually colder than here (but so is Alaska & that wasn't true last year), but don't consider the 10 degrees between USDA's estimation of typical lows that much different between your garden & mine. In this clearing in the woods, plenty of strategic windbreak but little heatsink.

Calling all familiar with Fantasia - spill the beans! Is this mophead as fantastic as advertised, or is the fantasy part unrealistic expectations?

This post was edited by vasue on Thu, Jun 26, 14 at 17:28