March 2008

Caring For Your Endless Summer^® Hydrangea

Endless Summer^® The Original and Endless Summer^® Blushing Bride

St. Paul, Minn. (Spring 2008) – Large, showy blooms, beautiful colors and the ability to rebloom all season long are what Endless Summer^® Hydrangeas are all about. Best of all, both Endless Summer The Original and Endless Summer Blushing Bride are easy to grow. Here are a few tips to make these plants even more enjoyable.

Watering
Bigleaf hydrangeas demand consistently moist, well-drained soil. This is especially true during the first season after planting when the roots have not yet penetrated the surrounding soil. Water your plant with a good soaking two to three times per week rather than a little every day, which will encourage a deeper root system and a healthier plant. Your hydrangea will immediately let you know when it needs water by letting its leaves droop. Adding organic matter to your soil and mulching will help to maintain an evenly moist soil.

Light Requirements
Both Endless Summer The Original and Endless Summer Blushing Bride prefer a semi-shaded site with morning sun and afternoon shade being the ideal. Planted in containers and given a regular water supply, both hydrangeas can also do well in full sun.

Pruning
To encourage rebloom, remove spent flowers. Because Endless Summer blooms on new growth, you don't have to wait until the next season to see armfuls of new blooms.

Endless Summer Hydrangeas are quite forgiving and will not suffer if left unpruned or pruned at the wrong time. In fact, young, recently planted shrubs are best left alone. Unlike other hydrangeas, your Endless Summer will bloom on both old and new growth, branches that grew last year and the new branches from this year. Another unique feature is that this hydrangea will continue to set buds and bloom throughout the season; deadheading the spent flowers will encourage this.

Feel free to cut the blooms for drying or fresh cut in vases because you will actually encourage the plant to produce more blossoms. Spring is the best time to prune. Many people like to leave the spent blooms on their plant because it adds winter interest. It may also act to insulate the new buds from frost and cold. They should be removed in spring however.

Fertilizing
To encourage flowering, we recommend a fertilizer low in nitrogen and high in phosphorus, with a number over 30. For instance an N-P-K ratio of 10-30-10 is ideal.

Northern Climate Winter Care (USDA hardiness zones 4-5)
To ensure overwintering success in the first year, the following is recommended:

• Stop all applications of fertilizer after August 15th to acclimate the plant for winter.
• Keep the soil moist through the fall months until the ground is frozen.
• Cover the plant with a four-inch layer of organic mulch (wood mulch, leaves, etc.). There is no need to cover all stems to the tip or to cut them back.
• Covering should be done when fully dormant (around November 30th), or at the same time you would cover perennials in your garden.
• In spring, uncover with your perennials when the ground is no longer frozen. Endless Summer will grow from the plant base and also from any old branches that survived winter.
• Be patient. Growth will come slowly until the heat of late spring stimulates the plant to grow faster.
• Once you see growth you can prune back the old branches to a finger width above the new green growth.
• Sit back and watch your plant grow and bloom. Depending on the severity of your climate, this should be mid-summer at the latest.

Visit the newly updated www.endlesssummerblooms.com for more information, ideas and beautiful, high-resolution images. Weʼve expanded the content for both garden journalists and consumers to provide growing tips, planting ideas and ways to preserve these beautiful hydrangeas for lasting decorations. The site also features a retail locator so your readers can find a garden center near them to purchase Endless Summer Blushing Bride or The Original.

Bailey Nurseries is a family-owned wholesale nursery with home offices in St. Paul, Minnesota. It is among the top wholesale nurseries in the United States and provides industry members throughout the U.S. and Canada with a full line of bareroot and container-grown plants from Baileyʼs properties in Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington.