Hello all

I have a 700 foot long straight sunny driveway in southern Maine zone 5a. I'd like to find a species of bushes that have red, white and blue variations of flowers about 4 to 8 foot tall that I can plant along the driveway. Soil ph is 5.5 to 6. I've thought of hydrangeas but don't believe I can only adjust the ph on one bush without affecting the next plant. Any advice as to what I should look at? Preferably same species.

Thanks in advance

Ernie

Maine

I do think some newer cultivars of hydrangea have been bred to not change color despite pH. But, what color(s) those come in, I'm unsure.

At this moment in time, only Big Leaf (h. macrophylla) and Mountain (h. serrata) Hydrangeas will provide those three colors. But not always in full sun. They prefer to be in morning sun although, you can encroach into a few early afternoon summer hours if your summers are not harsh, you mulch and you provide supplemental watering. I have seen some in full sun in Cape Cod. Perhaps you may get ideas by visiting Cape Cod, MA during the Cape Cod Hydrangea Festival on July 5-14, 2024. Certain newer varieties have been bred to resist turning blue and have blooms that are a shade of purple in acidic soils or a shade of pink in barely acidic soils. Other newer varieties have been bred to be almost a shade of pink in all kinds of soils but I have not personally grown these to test if that is true or an exaggeration. It still holds true though, that initially white blooms will not color change if you alter the soil pH. That being said, remember that as all hydrangea blooms age, in 1-2 months, they will start to color fade and color change until the blooms end brown. In cold areas with Big Leaf or Mountain Hydrangeas, consider reblooming (remontant) varieties in case the spring flower buds/stems get killed. Your soil will need naturally occurring aluminum as well as soil pH between 4.5 and fractionally less than 6.0 to get blues. At 6.0, you start to see purples in a typically narrow pH range.

luis_pr said: At this moment in time, only Big Leaf (h. macrophylla) and Mountain (h. serrata) Hydrangeas will provide those three colors. But not always in full sun. They prefer to be in morning sun although, you can encroach into a few early afternoon summer hours if your summers are not harsh, you mulch and you provide supplemental watering. I have seen some in full sun in Cape Cod. Perhaps you may get ideas by visiting Cape Cod, MA during the Cape Cod Hydrangea Festival on July 5-14, 2024.

Thanks for the response. I'll check into the Hydrangea Festival. My driveway is full sun which limits my choices. I'll look at the remontant varieties to see which colors are available. Thanks again.