Landscaping with hydrangeas made easy

One of the crown jewels of the summer garden, hydrangeas love to show off their beauty and grace in any garden landscape. Their long lasting blooms often linger well into the fall past their peak summer blooming period. If you’re looking for an easy and low maintenance option when planning your next landscape design project, look no further than hydrangeas. Requiring only minimal care once planted, hydrangeas are a great plant to have in your garden landscape for those with busy lives or for beginner gardeners. Hydrangeas are a favourite of ours here at Bluenose Blooms and truly one of the best ways you can add the most value to your garden.

If you’ve always wanted to add some of these vibrant shrubs to your landscape, but are wondering where they are best suited or how to use them in a landscape design, you’ve come to the right place. Today’s blog is dedicated to giving you inspirational ideas of how you can incorporate hydrangeas into your next landscaping project. So grab your gardening tools and let’s dive into the exciting world of landscaping with hydrangeas!

What are some of the benefits of planting hydrangeas in a garden landscape?

1.) Adaptability

Hydrangeas make the perfect companion for a variety of different garden landscapes. This is because they can adapt to various soil types and areas of the yard. Although they do best in well-draining soil and partial shade, they can also be successfully grown in areas with some sun. Make sure they are partially sheltered from the hot afternoon sun. The best place to plant your hydrangea is an area of your yard that receives morning sun and afternoon shade.

2.) Long blooming period

Since certain varieties of hydrangeas can bloom from late spring to early fall. They make for a spectacular display that takes you through several seasons. This extended bloom time provides continuous colour and interest in your garden landscape.

3.) Versitility

The garden design possibilities are truly endless when it comes to landscaping with hydrangeas. Hydrangeas are adaptable to different design styles and individual preferences. For example, when landscaping with hydrangeas you can use them as garden borders, hedges, foundation plantings, or as a standalone plants.

4.) Attractive flowerheads

When it comes to a showstopper in the garden, nothing can beat the beauty of a landscape that has a hydrangea in it! With their large and showy blooms, hydrangeas are available in a range of colours. These attractive flowers will add an awesome pop of colour to any garden or landscape.

5.) Cold hardiness

If you live in a northern growing zone like us here on Canada’s East Coast, you know that it is not always easy to find plants that will withstand our harsh winters. But, did you know that many varieties of hydrangea can stand up to these cold conditions? That’s right, there are actually several varieties of hydrangea that are cold hardy.

What are some companion plants that can be planted alongside hydrangeas in a garden landscape?

When it comes to pairing hydrangeas with other plants in your garden landscape, we like to suggest aiming for 1.) maximum colour, 2.) bloom time, and 3.) an interesting array of textures. Here is a list of some of our favourite companion plants to grow alongside hydrangeas:

1. Hostas: Like hydrangeas, hostas also like moist, well-draining soil and they thrive best in partial shade. Planting them around your hydrangeas will not only give you beautiful texture with their intricate patterned leaves, but also a variety of colour to accent the beauty of your hydrangea plants.
2. Daylilies: If you are growing any of the big leaf varieties of hydrangeas in either pink or blue, daylilies will also make a great companion plant. Try planting some in contrasting colours to highlight the brilliant blooms of your hydrangea. Daylilies are easy to grow and extremely low maintenance making them the perfect companion plant for those with busy lives or new gardeners.
3. Echinacea: Also available in a wide range of colours, echinacea are another hardy perennial that thrives when planted alongside hydrangeas. With a similar blooming time to most hydrangeas, planting echinacea alongside your hydrangea plants will give you long lasting blooms in your garden to take you through several seasons.
4. Ornamental grasses: To add some movement and texture into your landscape alongside your hydrangeas, why not try planting some ornamental grasses. With so many options and varieties to choose from, there is something that will help to accentuate the beauty of any of your hydrangea plants.
5. Astilbe: If your goal is to accentuate the beauty of your hydrangeas without overshining them, astilbe should be on your list of companion plants. Astilbe, with its gentle feathery blooms, also loves to grow in part-to-full shade making it the perfect compliment to your hydrangeas.
6. Camelias: Since hydrangeas often bloom over three seasons, camelias will help to fill the gap where they leave off and provide you with some winter interest. Camelias also prefer well-draining soil making them the perfect companion to hydrangeas.

What are some easy and low maintenance garden design ideas for hydrangeas?

Since hydrangeas are so versatile in the garden, they can fit into many different garden landscape designs. Here is a list of our top 5 garden design ideas for hydrangeas:

Hedging projects

Are you’re looking for privacy without the hassle of building a fence? Landscaping with hydrangeas to create a hedge to help frame your property is a perfect solution! When planted densely together, hydrangeas can help you to build a living wall which you can enjoy from many vantage points in your yard. Since hydrangeas will lose their leaves in the fall and winter, try interspersing some evergreens alongside your hydrangeas. This will provide much needed interest year round. 

Sprucing up perennial beds and garden borders

If you’re looking for a way to take your perennial beds and garden borders to the next level, look no further than landscaping with hydrangeas. With their beautiful and long-lasting blooms, hydrangeas can help you to add colour and texture to your perennials beds and are the perfect accent to any garden border.

Creating pathways

If you would like to create a pathway that leads out to your patio, pool, or greenhouse, a backyard landscape with hydrangeas will make the perfect compliment to your next project. To achieve this look, plant your hydrangeas closer together so that they gently lead visitors from your garden towards the parts of your yard you wish to highlight. 

Adding beautiful lines alongside a building

If you’ve got an area alongside a building at your home or business, planting a row of hydrangeas can help you to achieve bold and beautiful lines. Mixing them in with different evergreens can also help to keep interest going in your garden throughout various seasons when the hydrangeas eventually drop their leaves over the winter. 

Dressing up containers and urns

If you have a special container or urn that you have collected and haven’t settled on the perfect plant for it, why not plant a hydrangea in it? There are many miniature varieties of hydrangeas now available that can grow in containers. Ensuring that you have proper drainage in your container will be key here to helping you to maintain a healthy and happy plant. 

Accentuating garden structures

Have a water feature or gazebo in your yard that you would like to show off? Nothing pairs better with these types of garden landscape structures than hydrangeas. Plant them around the base of your structure for a touch of elegance and grace.

Final thoughts on easy landscaping with hydrangeas

If you’ve been scratching your head for a while now searching for the perfect plant to add a touch of elegance to your latest landscaping project, you really cannot go wrong with hydrangeas. Their strikingly beautiful and delicate blooms can liven up a large variety of different garden spaces. Until next time gardening friends, we hope you gained inspiration from today’s blog to start experimenting with hydrangeas in your own garden landscape. We look forward to hearing all about your latest projects over on our socials and sharing in the gardening journey with you!