Hydrangea plants are vibrant long-living flowering shrubs that bloom profusely summer through fall. Hydrangea bushes come in wonderful shades of blue, red, white, cream, pink, and purple. Their ability to tolerate wind and salt make them an ideal to be kept outdoors and indoors planted in pots. The best way to enjoy the scenic arrangement of hydrangea shrubs in a landscape is by planting them in multiples of 3 plants.

There are two principal groups of hydrangea plants:     

• Plants that blossom on new season growth
• Plants that blossom on last years growth

How to grow hydrangea plants?

Hydrangeas come from the propagated cuttings of an existing plant that will bear roots at a later stage or by planting the stem of an old hydrangea shrub. The propagation can be done by means of layering.  From the midsection of the hydrangeas stem, cut about one inch of the outer part. Then plant that cutoff portion firmly in the soil. Leave the upper tip of the planted stem uncovered. In the next few days, you will notice roots appearing from the stem’s planted portion. Once considerable amount of roots start arising from the stem, it can be replanted in the soil. You will have a big bush of hydrangea plants in about six months.

Once replanting is done, the next thing you need to do is add a mixture of organic matter to the soil. The mixture may also include organic leaves. Once these are done, all you need to do is water your plants regularly. Keep in mind that the hydrangea plants grow well in moist soil but not in overly watery soil. For best results, make sure that the plants receive more shade but little sunlight. Once all these steps are executed well, you will see the transplanted plants flourishing well in a month or two. Since the hydrangea plants grow fast, frequent phases of pruning of the stem and flower head needs to be done. The right time to prune is when the hydrangea plant begins to fade its brilliant foliage. But don’t prune during the colder month, because that is when the hydrangea plants start flowering for the forthcoming season.

Hydrangeas care

Hydrangea plants are long-living shrubs. It is important that you need to take good care of the plants particularly in the first year after their transplantation. During the summer months, provide the plants with plenty of water to prevent them from drying out. Likewise, during the winter months make sure that the moisture content of the soil is maintained constant. Overly watery soil would certainly dampen their growth. The trick is to maintain the right balance in the soil content during varying climatic conditions.

Health benefits

Did you know that the hydrangea plants have numerous health benefits? A native of the U.S the hydrangea plants are used in the treatment of many ailments like Psoriasis, Arthritis, Multiple Sclerosis, and a lot of other diseases. The hydrangea plants are also used to treat prostate cancer, improve the functioning of the urinary tract, fight viral infections, and to treat urethritis, prostatitis and cystitis.