Hydrangeas

I so love hydrangeas, and here are some of the many I have in my garden. (Some photos taken two or three weeks ago, I’m so behind on posting here!)

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‘Endless Summer’ just turning blue

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Hydrangea arborescens ‘Invincibelle Spirit’

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Pink ‘Endless Summer’ slowly turning blue over the years in our acid soil

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Blue Hydrangea

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Purple turning blue (photo taken at twilight)

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Another blue

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Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Pia’, a pink dwarf

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I think I love all hydrangeas, but there’s just something about the blue, isn’t there? The blooms last for months, and will hold their color indefinitely after cutting. I have some indoors in a vase from last year, and they are still as blue as they were when I first cut them.

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Blooming Now

We had flooding rains for weeks this spring, and now no rain for two weeks and very hot temps and high humidity… so I’m having to water most every day. Still, I love this time of year. Here are just a few of the many snapshots I have taken in my yard this week.

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Prairie Mallow (Sidalcea malviflora)
This very tall flower was supposed to have been red. :) I like it anyway.

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4′ tall, White and Purple Veronica in my front flower bed

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One of many, many clumps of Coneflowers in my yard.

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‘Nikko Blue’, this is the bluest of my hydrangeas ~ light amethyst Astilbe

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Small lamp post bed with pentas, angelonia, salvia, celosia ~ Iron Cross Oxalis with purple shamrocks and baby hostas and heucheras in the secret garden

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In-ground fountain in the secret garden, surrounded by hostas and astilbes. The led lights in this fountain cycle through several different colors
and at night, it lights up the tree canopy overhead with glowing colors.

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More Blooms

Here are a few more blooms from around my yard this past week. I just can’t keep up with everything this year!

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This pink Endless Summer Hydrangea is so pretty this year. I’m sure it’s on the way to becoming blue here in our acid soil, but it sure is pretty halfway there. The camera doesn’t completely capture the purple tone of the blooms.

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Endless Summer Pink Hydrangea

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Click any photo to view larger

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Dahlias are thriving in the heat.

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Japanese Forest Grass and Portulaca

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The Elephant Ears are growing well in the new Stump Bed.

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Anemones with chartreuse Coleus and Purple Shamrocks
in the background, new stump bed

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Native Rhododendrons are in bloom.

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Pink Verbena, Mixed Caladiums, Purple Angelonia and Red Pentas in Lamp post flower bed

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Mixed containers on the patio.

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Impatiens in a growing bag on a tree in the secret garden, Blue Allium and bugs, tomatos ripening!

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Endless Summer hydrangea

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This is a blue Endless Summer hydrangea. I have several of these shrubs, and I’m growing this particular one in a container. These hydrangeas bloom on old and new wood and repeat bloom throughout the summer. When in bloom, these shrubs stand out more than anything else in the yard. In acid soil, the blooms are a beautiful deep blue. In alkaline soil, the blooms are pink.

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