14 Beautiful Types of Hydrangea to Grow

By
Jamie McIntosh
Jamie McIntosh
Jamie McIntosh
Jamie McIntosh has written about gardening and special occasion flowers for the Spruce since 2011. She has more than 20 years of experience caring for flowers and plants. She was a feature writer for Organic Gardening at Suite101, where she won awards for her writing.
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Updated on 05/03/22
Reviewed by
Debra LaGattuta
Debra LaGattuta
Reviewed by Debra LaGattuta
Debra LaGattuta is a gardening expert with three decades of experience in perennial and flowering plants, container gardening, and raised bed vegetable gardening. She is a Master Gardener and lead gardener in a Plant-A-Row, which is a program that offers thousands of pounds of organically-grown vegetables to local food banks. Debra is a member of The Spruce Gardening and Plant Care Review Board.
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Fact checked by
Jillian Dara
Jillian Dara
Fact checked by Jillian Dara
Jillian is a freelance journalist with 10 years of editorial experience in the lifestyle genre. She is a writer and fact checker for TripSavvy, as well as a fact-checker for The Spruce.
Learn more about The Spruce's Editorial Process
blue and purple hydrangeas

The Spruce / Claire Cohen Bates 

Whether planted in containers or in a garden bed, few plants provide a bigger impact than a hydrangea. Lacecap, oakleaf, panicle, climbing, smooth, and large-leafed hydrangeas bring diverse texture, color, and form to the summer landscape. Gardeners who crave colors from the cool side of the color wheel, such as pink, purple, white, and blue, will delight in the mix of color hues that are available, sometimes multiple colors on a single shrub. Hydrangeas are best planted in moist, rich soil. This is the rare flowering shrub that does fairly well in shady conditions, but for best performance, most hydrangeas do like to experience some sun in the morning.

Most commercially-available hydrangea cultivars are derived from a relatively few species of the hydrangea genus: H. arborescens (smooth hydrangea), H. macrophylla (bigleaf hydrangea), H. paniculata (panicle hydrangea), H. anomala (climbing hydrangea), H. quercifolia (oakleaf hydrangea), and H. serrata (mountain hydrangea).

Warning

Hydrangeas are toxic to people, The buds, flowers, and leaves of hydrangea plants contain glycoside amygdalin, which can break down to produce cyanide.

These 14 hydrangeas can be a perfect fit for your landscape.

  • 01 of 14

    Incrediball® Hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens 'Abetwo')

    Incrediball Hydrangea

    skymoon13 / Getty Images

    If plant breeders are sometimes guilty of hyperbole in their plant name selections, this is not the case with Incrediball—the commercial name for the 'Abetwo' cultivar of H. arborescens. In spite of the huge, densely packed 12-inch flowers the shrub produces in abundance, the sturdy stems on this plant will not allow the flowers on this white hydrangea to flop into the mud. One potted plant will make a gorgeous anchor in your summer border, or you can plant several for a showy hedge.

    • Native Area: H. arborescens is native to the eastern United States
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 9
    • Height: 4 to 5 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
  • 02 of 14

    'Nikko Blue' Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla 'Nikko Blue')

    Nikko Blue Hydrangea

    Han Xiang Chua / Getty Images

    Keep your soil on the acidic side if you want to achieve the most intense blue blooms possible from your 'Nikko Blue' hydrangea bush. This mophead variety blooms earlier than most, usually beginning in June and endures for two months. Provide winter protection in USDA hardiness zone 5 because as flowers are produced from the buds that formed on last year's stems. This is a cultivar of H. macrophylla, which is also known as bigleaf hydrangea.

    • Native Area: H. macrophylla is native to Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 6 to 11
    • Height: 4 to 6 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Part shade
  • 03 of 14

    Limelight Hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata 'Limelight')

    White flowers of Hydrangea Paniculata Limelight
    Poliuszko / Getty Images

    Green flowers are the little black dresses of the gardening world: they flatter all situations. The chartreuse flowers of 'Limelight' hydrangeas age to a mellow pink as the season progresses. Plants bloom on new wood, making this a very hardy selection in cold areas. Although 'Limelight' is a slightly more compact cultivar of H. paniculata, it is still a fast grower that has been known to reach a height of ten feet; in smaller spaces, look for its smaller cousin 'Little Lime.'

    • Native Area: H. paniculata is native to China and Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 9
    • Height: 6 to 10 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
  • 04 of 14

    Cityline® 'Mars' Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla Cityline 'Mars')

    Cityline Mars Picotee Hydrangea

    Donald Hamilton / Getty Images

    A picotee petal adds a little bling to your hydrangea collection. This compact shrub is the perfect addition to your patio garden. Like other Hydrangea macrophylla varieties, soil pH affects bloom color. Cityline 'Mars' shrubs might have multiple colors on the same bush the season following installation as the plants adjust to your unique soil chemistry. The specimen shown here is situated in a garden with a neutral pH, which results in a purple shade hovering just between blue and pink. Maintaining such a narrow pH range is easier to do with container culture than in the ground.

    • Native Area: H. macrophylla is native to Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
    • Height: 1 to 3 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
    Continue to 5 of 14 below.
  • 05 of 14

    'Zinfin Doll' Hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata 'Zinfin Doll')

    Zinfin Doll Hydrangea

    F. D. Richards / Flickr / CC BY 2.0

    The strawberries and cream coloration of the 'Zinfin Doll®' hydrangea will not fade in full sun and attracts butterflies all summer long. Although classified as a panicle hydrangea, the full blooms of 'Zinfin Doll' are lush, like those of a mophead hydrangea. No special pH alterations are necessary to achieve the color change from white to pink; it occurs naturally as a consequence of maturing.

    • Native Area: H.paniculata is native to China and Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 8
    • Height: 6 to 8 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
  • 06 of 14

    Climbing Hydrangea (Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaris)

    Climbing Hydrangea

    Perry Mastrovito / Getty Images

    Anyone who inherits a climbing hydrangea specimen is lucky. Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaris is notoriously slow to get growing. However, once this self-clinging vine becomes established, it can climb and sprawl 40 feet or more onto fences, structures, and trees. For added interest, look for the variegated climbing hydrangea 'Miranda' (H. petiolaris subsp. petiolaris 'Miranda'), which features creamy yellow leaf margins in addition to ten-inch flower heads.

    • Native Area: Himalayas and China
    • USDA Hardiness Zone: 4 to 8
    • Height: 30 to 50 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Part shade to full shade
  • 07 of 14

    'Gatsby Pink' Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia 'Gatsby Pink')

    Gatsby Pink Hydrangea

    Through the Greenhouse Glass

    Gardeners who cherish North American native plants should not miss the showy oakleaf hydrangea cultivar 'Gatsby Pink.' A season-long spectacle of color, flowers start white and gradually change to pink, then the foliage joins the display in autumn with a brilliant red showing. Because the plants bloom on old wood, oakleaf hydrangeas like 'Gatsby Pink' require a garden in USDA hardiness zone 5 or warmer to prevent winter damage that affects future growth.

    • Native Area: H. quercifolia is native to the southeastern United States
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
    • Height: 6 to 8 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
  • 08 of 14

    'BloomStruck®' Bigleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla 'BloomStruck')

    Bloomstruck Hydrangea

    Jennifer Blount / Getty Images

    Hydrangeas in the Endless Summer series defy harsh winters by blooming on both new and old wood. 'Bloomstruck' is the fourth introduction in the series, with deep purple or rose blossoms on four-foot plants. If you're confused about the effect soil pH has on bloom color, look for the Color Me Pink™ or Color Me Blue™ garden lime and sulfur kits to take the guesswork out of your hydrangea flower color.

    • Native Area: H. macrophylla is native to Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 4 to 9
    • Height: 3 to 4 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Part shade
    2:38

    Click Play to Learn How to Easily Grow 'BloomStruck' Bigleaf Hydrangea

    Continue to 9 of 14 below.
  • 09 of 14

    'Blue Deckle' Hydrangea (Hydrangea serrata 'Blue Deckle')

    Blue Deckle Hydrangea

    Cora Niele/Getty Images

    Hydrangea serrata 'Blue Deckle' is a small lacecap type of hydrangea that will thrive in the dappled sunlight of tall deciduous trees in USDA hardiness zone 6 and warmer climates. This late-blooming shrub that peaks in July and August has more in store for you when autumn arrives because its brilliant red and purple leaves rival any fall foliage display sought by leaf peepers.

    • Native Area: H. serrata is native to Japan and Korea
    • USDA Hardiness Zone: 6 to 9
    • Height: 3 to 4 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Part shade
  • 10 of 14

    'Eldorado' Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla 'Eldorado')

    El Dorado Hydrangea

    Neil Holmes / Getty Images

    If your garden is saturated with blue and pink, maybe it is time to spice up the landscape with a little shrub with red blooms such as the 'Eldorado' bigleaf hydrangea cultivar. This medium-sized mophead hydrangea blooms in the fall in acidic or neutral soil.

    • Native Area: H. macrophylla is native to Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 6 to 9
    • Height: 3 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
  • 11 of 14

    YOU&ME® 'Together' Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla YOU&ME 'Together')

    You and Me Together Hydrangea

    Photos Lamontagne / Getty Images

    YOU&ME® 'Together' is a double-flowered form that produces a much more dense flower head than your typical bigleaf macrophylla varieties. Pair with others in the YOU&ME series for a rich floral display.

    • Native Area: H. macrophylla is native to Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zone: 6 to 9
    • Height: 36 inches
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
  • 12 of 14

    'Madame Emile Mouillere' Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla 'Madame Emile Mouillere')

    Madame Mouillere Hydrangea

    Gilles Le Scanff / Joelle Caroline Mayer / Getty Images

    'Madame Emile Mouillere' is more than just a very hardy and reliable little mophead hydrangea. Although its blooms appear white, they fades to a pale, ethereal blue or dusky pink as the summer progresses. Look for a tinge of blue or pink in the bloom's eye to get a preview of the color progression.

    • Native Area: H. macrophylla is native to Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 5 to 9
    • Height: Up to 6 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Part sun
    Continue to 13 of 14 below.
  • 13 of 14

    'Miss Saori' Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla 'Miss Saori')

    Miss Saori Hydrangea

    National Garden Bureau

    'Miss Saori' made its debut at London's 2014 Chelsea Flower Show, where it was declared the Chelsea Plant of the Year. The sterile flowers appear in June, followed by burgundy fall foliage. Creamy double flowers have picotee rose margins, contributing texture and color to the garden not found in any other hydrangea. The plants are compact and controlled in their growth, making them an ideal specimen plant for the middle of the flower border.

    • Native Area: H. macrophylla is native to Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zone: 5 to 9
    • Height: 3 to 4 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
  • 14 of 14

    'Unique' Hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata ‘Unique’)

    Hydrangea paniculata Unique

    Ruth Brown/Getty Images

    'Unique' is a particularly hardy panicle hydrangea that adapts well to training as a tree form. Remove all lower branches to form a central leader, which becomes the trunk of the tree. This hydrangea flowers on new wood (the current year's new stems).

    • Native Area: H. paniculata is native to China and Japan
    • USDA Hardiness Zones: 3 to 8
    • Height: up to 10 feet
    • Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade

Hydrangeas are generally a very easy and trouble-free flowering shrub. However, a variety of fungal leaf spot diseases are possible. You can avoid some of these diseases by watering early in the day and by watering at the base of the plant rather than overhead. If bacterial or viral diseases strike, the affected plant parts should be removed and destroyed. If the plant has been infected by a virus, you might need to remove and destroy the entire plant.

How to Grow and Care for Hydrangeas
Article Sources
The Spruce uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

  1. Poisonous Plants. Ucanr.Edu.

  2. Why Hydranagea Macrophylla Don’t Flower. Center for Agriculture, Food, and the Environment.

  3. Hydrangea Diseases. Penn State Extension.

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