Hydrangea quercifolia: characteristics, uses, cultivation and care

Oak leaves

One of the plants that has the most landscape interest during spring and summer is the hydrangea quercifolia. It is a plant that recruit a wide variety of colors for its foliage. In the fall season, the leaves are deep purple-red in color and have dried flower heads that provide great ornamental interest. It has an orange bark on the stems and the seed heads provide a pleasant texture during the winter months.

In this article we are going to tell you about the main characteristics and care of the hydrangea quercifolia and why it is so interesting.

Key features

hydrangea quercifolia

Although the scientific name is hydrangea quercifolia its common name is hydrangea. It is especially known for its large leaves with a thicker texture that resemble the leaves of some oak species. Therefore, it has this scientific name. Usually toShe wants a hues of red, orange, and purple during the fall month. The common name also refers to this characteristic. The common name is oak leaf hydrangea.

It is a hydrangea native to the southeastern United States and grows on the banks of rivers and rain forests. It is a medium ornamental shrub that grows slowly when young and medium when established. It meets all the requirements of garden shrubs, because it not only arouses interest throughout the year, but also produces spectacular flowers, the flowering period is long and the leaves are interesting. In case all these qualities weren’t enoughit can be added that its care is very simple, including pruning.

Starting in June and throughout the summer, most varieties of hydrangea will emit large, long-lasting inflorescences in more or less elongated panicles. Its flowers (small sterile flowers), with one or two petals, are white to cream in color, gradually changing to pink, lavender, bronze and finally brown as the season progresses.

Oakleaf hydrangea flowers

fall bush

The flowering period of this plant is very long, with many flowers. The odorless flowers of the plant gradually change from white to pink and / or purple. The flowers grow in pyramid-shaped clusters. The flowers appear in early summer (May) and continue to bloom until mid-summer.

Showy blooms make excellent cut flowers and dried flowers that can be used for dry arrangements. Or you can leave them on the plant in the fall. They will dry on the branches and increase interest in late fall and winter. The leaves are 3 to 7 lobed and dark green in color. They are lush green during the growing season and as winter approaches, they transition to provide beautiful fall colors.

Uses of hydrangea quercifolia

Hydrangea quercifolia leaves

The large leaves and their texture provide a good background for the flowering and flowering of smaller shrubs and herbs. It is a large hydrangea (it can reach 2 meters high and 2,5 meters wide), which limits its use in certain gardens. However, breeders have been trying to get smaller varieties so that this hydrangea can find its place even in very small gardens, such as the “Pee Wee” and “Sikes Dwarf” hydrangea.

Hydrangea can grow in partial shade, but it grows best in full sunlight, because sunlight promotes the growth of most flowers and provides beautiful leaf colors in the fall. It is used as a decorative element in many North American gardens, for which has a wide range of commercial uses.

It also has an important purpose, which is called ‘fire prevention’, that is, it provides moisture to prevent the spread of fire. If we live in a wooded area, building a retaining wall is very interesting.

How to grow it

If you grow this plant and follow these tips, you will find that getting this plant to grow and stay alive is not difficult. Unlike other varieties, it has strong resistance to pests and diseases once it takes root, and is also very resistant to cold and drought.

The important aspects to take into account when planting are:

  • Planting in winter is recommended.
  • This plant can reach 3 meters in height and 2,5 meters in width, so it is almost essential to grow it outdoors to turn it into a garden item.
  • If we want to keep it in the home or garden and there is not enough, we can use pruning to keep it small enough so that it can fit in our home.
  • As for the weather, it will be easier to plant and maintain in hot weather and sunny summer.

Caring for the hydrangea quercifolia

Sunlight must be half sheltered and there must be several hours of sunlight to grow well. The amount of sunlight received will determine the beauty of the fall colors. It is believed that the best time to get direct sunlight is in the morning, so you have partial shade or shade in the afternoon. Then we must direct it to the east.

It should be watered regularly, at least once a week or more often in extremely hot conditions. We can look at the moisture in the soil and prevent it from drying out completely.

Pruning requires special attention, this variety blooms on aged or old wood, that is, it will bloom on branches that have existed in the previous year but did not bloom. When pruning, we must remove the branches that have flowered and keep those that have not yet flowered. Those branches that are removed and pruned will grow new branches, which will bloom in the next season. If we want to maintain a non-sparse growth habit, we can do a light pruning in late winter or early spring.

We can see huge oak leaves and blooms in mid spring and it can last until late summer.

Likes moist, well-drained, organic, and slightly acidic soil. However, it can tolerate neutral to slightly alkaline soils. If the soil is extremely alkaline, the leaves can become slightly chlorotic, which can be corrected by fertilizing every year.

I hope that with this information you can learn more about the Hydrangea quercifolia.

Hydrangea quercifolia: characteristics, uses, cultivation and care

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