Monday, June 22, 2009

Lady in Red Hydrangea

Not your grandma's old-timey hydrangea....

The traditional hydrangea has dozens of these petals that make up a puff ball blossom. The Lady in Red blossom has a lacy center with only eight of these petals on the outer edge.

The lacecaps bloom pinkish-white in the spring and turn burgundy-rose as they mature. I discovered the petals actually turn themselves over and it's the underside that becomes burgundy.

The dark green leaves become reddish-purple in the fall and stems are dark red year round.

The bush is supposed to be only three feet tall at maturity, but mine is already at least four feet and growing taller and larger every day.


Here is the bush in full bloom in late May:




A close-up of the lacecap blossom:

1 comment:

June said...

Don't you think that the lace-cap hydrangeas are gorgeous?? I like them much better than the puffballs. . .