Planting Hydrangeas and Phlox
Creating a perennial garden takes time, patience, and thoughtful planning.
The perennial hydrangea border across from my chicken coops has long been home to a selection of colorful hydrangeas. In more recent years, I expanded it and added other plantings, such as irises, ligularia, phlox, Aruncus, Euonymus, and catnip. Yesterday, my gardeners planted more hydrangeas to fill in bare spots, including Berry White, Strawberry Sundae, and Vanilla Strawberry. They also added a few more varieties of phlox, including Bubblegum Pink, and Coral Crème Drop. The plants are part of our recent delivery from First Editions Shrubs and Trees.
Enjoy these photos.
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- I’m always expanding and improving my gardens. Most of the time when plants arrive, I already have in mind where they will go. Many of these hydrangeas will fill in my perennial border across from my chicken coops.
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- I also plan to add some phlox to the same garden – both plants in shades of pink.
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- I began expanding this bed In 2020. I planted more hydrangeas and perennials I knew would do well in this location with sunny mornings and shady afternoons.
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- It’s developed nicely over the years, but my head gardener, Ryan McCallister, and I keep an eye on it and supplement it with other plantings to fill in any voids.
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- This year we’re adding some of the First Editions hydrangeas. Now that it is fall, these hydrangeas are beginning to fade, but they’re all in excellent condition and ready to be planted.
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- This is a Berry White Panicle Hydrangea, Hydrangea paniculata ‘Renba.’ It has strong, upright stems and large cone-shaped flower panicles. The flower color starts white in July then progresses to dark pink, beginning at the bottom and developing up to the top of the panicle.
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- Strawberry Sundae is also a panicle hydrangea. This one is perfect in small hedges or as part of mass plantings. The flowers emerge creamy white in midsummer and change to pink as night temperatures cool down.
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- The Vanilla Strawberry™ Panicle Hydrangea features enormous flower heads that are held upright – first white, then pink, then red in later fall.
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- Ryan also places some of the new phlox in the garden. It’s always a good idea to position the potted plants first before planting in order to visualize best locations and experiment with design layouts.
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- Phlox is a hardy, long-lived perennial that blooms from mid-summer to early fall. I grow a lot of phlox in my flower garden. This Bubblegum Pink Phlox is fragrant with bright blossoms accentuated with dark pink eyes.
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- Josh digs all the holes before planting, which is faster and more efficient when planting in numbers.
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- As always, holes should be at least twice the size of the plant’s root ball.
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- Once dug, Josh sprinkles fertilizer in the hole and in the surrounding soil. For these, we use an all-purpose formula with a good balance of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium from Miracle-Gro.
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- The plant should sit at the same depth it was in the pot. Josh backfills, tamping the soil lightly at the end to ensure good contact.
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- In gardening, the “rule of odds” dictates it’s best to plant in odd numbers such as three or five because it creates a more natural and visually appealing look compared to even numbered groupings.
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- Josh scarifies the next plant. I have the crew scarify all root balls, meaning make beneficial cuts, before planting to encourage new growth and make the plant more stable.
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- This hydrangea will fill in this void nicely. Remember, perennials grow slowly the first year, faster the second year, and then usually reach full size in the third year.
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- Josh digs a hole for this Endless Summer hydrangea called ‘Dream Cloud.’
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- Depending on the variety, some hydrangeas can bloom all the way through fall.
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- These are macrophylla hydrangeas, commonly called big leaf hydrangeas – deciduous shrubs with a more rounded habit.
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- All these hydrangeas and phlox will flourish in this garden and make nice additions to the already established plants. Develop gardens thoughtfully and they will provide many years of enjoyment.
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