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Hardiness:
Zone 5
Bloom
Time: Mid-summer
to fall
Bloom
Color: Doubled,
pink or blue flowers turn to red or dark blue later in the
season
Foliage Color:
Glossy, green
Size:
3.5-5 feet tall and wide
Exposure: Full sun
to partial shade
Soil:
Well-drained soil
Pruning:
Shamrock Hydrangea forms its flower buds in later summer and
then flowers in late June. The best time to prune is it
after it blooms, from mid-July to mid-August. Cease pruning
in mid-august to allow time for the flower buds to form
prior to winter.
As a
young plant it is best to prune or pinch your plant in order
to build a full bodied, well branched plant. If the plant
is leggy when you purchased it, shear the plant back hard by
1/3 to 1/2 its original size. Once it puts on an inch or
two of growth, pinch the branch tips to remove just the
growing tip. This tip controls branching. Once it is
removed the buds below it will turn into stems. Once these
new branches grow an inch or two, pinch the tip out again.
You can repeat this throughout the first growing season as
you are tending your garden. Although you will sacrifice
one year of bloom, this technique results in a well
branched, full bodied plant that will have more flowers in
subsequent years. The second season in the ground, repeat
the pinching practice (or lightly shear) up until
mid-August. Cease pruning and pinching to allow the flower
buds to set.
During
the third and subsequence seasons, prune or pinch as
necessary after flowering and before bud set in mid-August.
Do not be afraid to prune or shear your plant harder if you
wish to maintain a shorter size.
Watering:
High moisture. Moisture is a necessity of this plant.
Wildlife: None
Type:
Deciduous
Fertilizing:
Fertilize in early spring by applying a slow release
fertilizer specialized for trees & shrubs. Follow the label
for recommended rate of application. Flower color is
affected by pH. For blue flowers, the soil must be more
acidic and for pink flowers, the soil must be more
alkaline. An easy way to induce blue flowers is to add one
tablespoon of Aluminum sulfate to a gallon of water and soak
the roots in early spring. Treat two times.
Uses:
Groupings or
masses, perennial or shrub borders, specimen, screens or
hedges, mixed container, cut flowers.
Breeder: Corinne
Mallet
A cool
new variety of hydrangea in the Japanese tradition.
Delicate, doubled florets are more refined than those of the
more familiar mophead hydrangeas.
Flowering
begins in July with pink or blue flowers (depending on soil
pH). As the season progresses, bloom color deepens into
rich red or violet. This variety is very floriferous and
long blooming
‘Shamrock’ is somewhat more compact than other hydrangea
varieties, and may be slightly more frost resistant.
Hydrangea
fans take note: a portion of the royalties this plant earns
are used to support the hydrangea collection of the French
Hydrangea Society near Dieppe in Upper Normandy. Who knows
what exciting new varieties may come out of this respected
breeding program?
Available at
better nurseries, garden centers
Sources
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