A Touch of Blue

We have a clump of what I'm presuming to be "Nikko Blue" hydrangeas next to our driveway. They came with the house. Up until last fall they never blossomed. I did some research and decided that they just weren't suited for our climate zone. Every year they would grow up nice and tall but never quite reach the bud to blossom stage. Blame it on global warming or just dumb luck, but last fall they bloomed in a beautiful bounty of blue blossoms. I had a garage sale during their best weeks and I had customers asking me about them and offering to buy cuttings from the plants.

So far this year I only have one blossom. It however makes up for the lack of shrub-mates. It is the most perfect shade of blue with just a hint of purple. It is so striking against the green and ever increasing brown of the late summer garden it stops me in my tracks every time I drive in the yard.



There are signs that we may be blessed with more of its kind.







Less than 3 yards away I find this:



This type of hydrangea's blossoms are either pink or blue depending on the acidity of the soil they grow in. You can amend the soil to help determine what color blossoms you get. I don't do any amending or fertilizing. Oddly, within 10 feet of garden space I evidently have two very different types of soil. Pretty cool actually.

I have a thing for hydrangeas.



This little one is in a bed by my living room window. It is of the "Endless Summer" variety. I had to move this one last fall because it wasn't doing well under our big Hickory tree. I was worried it wouldn't make it but it finally perked up and mustered up one blossom this summer.


This one is over under a dining room window. I'm not sure of the variety. But its blossoms start out with a slight hint of pink and quickly fade to white.

I also have an Oak Leaf variety and the big Snowball type in the back yard.

But my favorite Hydrangea is this one:

Of the "Bernese Mountain Dog" variety.