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mwiehn

Full Sun - ES or FE Hydrangeas a good idea?

marcindy
12 years ago

I had a formal rose garden in full sun in my back yard that has severe rose midge problems. After the first flush in June no blossoms until late in the fall. I started removing the roses and replaced them with perennials for long season interest. Each of the four quadrants has a low hedge of boxwood about 2 feet tall. Right now each quadrant has a row of Russian sage in the back and I would like to put a row of three or four hydrangeas in front of them. I am considering either the ES series or the FE series, but don't want to rule out the dwarf forms of H. paniculata as well.

Several factors could be a challenge here. I am zone 5b, it is in full sun and I have clay-ish soil. The soil is my least concern, it has been amended well over the years and is very workable and friable. The full sun (from about 10am until about 5pm) seems to me more of a challenge, so might be my zone. Also, this part of my yard is in full view and on my daily strolling path. Something that starts blooming early in the summer and blooms throughout summer would be ideal. And without trying to sound picky, I love my Limelight hydrangea, if it just started blooming a month earlier, it would be perfect (although a little large for that spot).

So far I have tried to grow a smattering of ES and FE hydrangeas in a partially shaded part of my yard and they do ok, but they always stay very small, about 18" max. They seem to freeze back to the ground each winter and have to regrow each year. Which has me a little concerned. If I go with ES or FE hydrangeas in that formal sunny garden I need shrubs that are at least 2ft tall, 3ft would be ideal. If they keep dying back each winter that wouldn't be helpful.

So, am I asking the impossible? Or are there hydrangeas out there that you have experience with that would do well in this situation? Any help or advice is very welcome. Thanks so much in advance.

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