Hydrangea Color Change - Knowledgebase Question

Maple Valley, WA
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Question by BLKBENZ98
September 30, 1999
What to do to change the color of hydranges? My pink one has turned greenish white.


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Answer from NGA
September 30, 1999
White flowers sometimes have a greenish tinge when they first open, but this generally disappears with maturity.

You can change the color of hydrangea blooms with a simple soil treatment. Pink and red bydrangeas often turn blue or purple in acid soils, and plants can be made red by liming the soil or applying superphosphate. For blue flowers, treat the soil with 2 Tablespoons of aluminum sulphate per plant, making 4-6 applications at 2 week intervals, starting in the early spring before the plants bloom. (Sulfur will acidify the soil. The desired pH range would be between 5.5 and 6.) For pink flowers, add lime to the soil, to raise the pH above 7.8). Test your soil to measure the pH range.

Hydrangeas bloom on last year's wood so cut back the stems that have finished flowering to promote the growth of new stems, which will develop new flower buds. Next season they should look spectacular!

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