Large-leaved hydrangea (garden) is the ancestor of many industrial varieties. At home in Japan and China, the shrub reaches 4 meters. Cultivated plants with smooth bright green leaves located on erect shoots are not very tall.
Decorative varieties of large-leaved hydrangea plants are divided into Japanese with corymbose flat flowers and changeable with spherical inflorescences.
The most popular hydrangea is a large-leaf spherical shape. This variety has large flowers up to 4 cm in diameter with different colors from white and pale pink flowers to dark carmine.
Famous European varieties are Altona, Blue Bonnet, General Viscount de Vibray, Amy Pasquier, Goliath with pink or purple flowers. In the variety Protsiroza, at the beginning of the inflorescence they bloom with a pink color, and after a few weeks they acquire a dark crimson tone, which is combined with bronze leaves. A fine white variety is Madame E. Mulier.
If the spherical hydrangea large-leaved amazes the imagination with lush flowering, the varieties with corymbose flowers capture their grace. Their flat, wide inflorescences consist of small flowers of different colors, located in the middle, and large external buds surrounding the central ones.
So, for example, varieties and Mariesia and Bluewywe have lilac or pink inflorescences, Lilasina and Veitchia are dark purple with bright edges, and Whitewave surprises with dazzling whiteness.
Almost all types of non-white large-leaved hydrangea have a unique amazing property of changing the color of buds depending on the acidic environment of the soil.
If the earth wears a slightly alkaline environment - the flowers are pink, if acidic - the color changes to blue or blue. Peat soils are sometimes given to blue.
In order to grow blue hydrangea, it is necessary to apply special fertilizers every two weeks to the soil with an alkaline reaction, containing iron salts, dyes or ordinary alum (the solution is prepared by adding ammonium potassium and 3 alum-potassium alum in one liter of water). For one flower, 2 liters of such a liquid is enough.
Large-leaved hydrangea is a plant that grows quickly, loves moisture and warmth, demanding on the fertility of the earth. It multiplies well by dividing the bush and green cuttings.
Large leaf hydrangea: care
From small groups, plants create beautiful lawns and amazing hedges. However, in the open field, flowers grow only in the southern regions of Russia.
But, if it is impossible to grow in the garden, then a delicate plant feels great in a room or a greenhouse. The main condition is the availability of quality soil and good drainage, and during the period of active growth, regular watering and top dressing are necessary. At the end of the growing season, when foliage is discarded, it is necessary to cut the shoots briefly.
In winter, flowers need complete rest. They are kept in a cool room with an air temperature not lower than plus five. At the end of winter, when the kidneys swell, the pots are transferred to a lighter and warmer room, excluding direct sunlight.
In early spring, organic matter should be added over the surface of the substrate and regular watering and top dressing should begin. In summer, it is useful to take hydrangea outdoors to the courtyard, decorate it with a walkway, porch or balcony. You can also relocate the potted plant to the garden before autumn. The place where large-leaved hydrangea will be located, you need to choose in a light shade, and do not forget about spring frosts, from which the plant should be protected.
At the beginning of summer, all efforts will be rewarded by the continued magnificent flowering of hydrangeas.