Has anyone had luck growing hydrangea in zone 9b?

not so much, but not impossible. I struggle here in gainesville

you really need more cold

The white-flowered oak leaf hydrangeas are supposed to be easier. The big mopheads really like rich, acid soil cooler temperatures and a nice long dormant period in winter, none of which Florida supplies most years.

I kept a couple of white lace-caps (grocery store rescues, from the holidays) alive for 3 or 4 years in large pots, under my big oak trees but they were terrible divas. I finally had enough of coddling them, planted them in the ground with lots of nice compost, and left them to their devices. They were gone the next summer. This pic taken 5 years ago.


A nice alternative plant is Dombeya, with beautiful clusters of pink flowers. Tropical Hydrangea (Dombeya wallichii)

I was hoping for a flowering plant that would be about 3' high and 3' wide and would survive in sun to light shade.

Well, it's a good thing you didn't try hydrangea, they'd never do any good in Florida sunshine.

Something like plumbago would fill the bill really well, and they have that gorgeous blue flower, a lot like the blue hydrangeas, too. They take very well to pruning so you can keep them any size you want.

Good suggestion Elaine and unlike Hydrangeas, the Plumbagos bloom all summer long.

I love plumbago, they are my go to everywhere plant. And like you say, they bloom all summer. Hummers love them. All good. Well, they can use prunning, but thats not the end of the world, no thorns.

@hbv2020
My Dad has had a few hydrangeas for many years, he has a nice rich soil here in zone 9b. My Dad has well irrigation and makes his own homemade compost, so waters his plants well. I'd say they get very good sun in the early part of the day, and shade during the hot part. I've tried to grow them but my soil is too sandy and they died out eventually, so they like nice rich moist soil. The blooms only last a couple months though, he just cut the browning blooms off his, so now just a green bush.

My neighbor has a large very well established hydrangea macrophylla bush by her back door. It's the endless summer variety. We're in zone 10a. I also have one but mine is potted. I've had mine only since last summer. It's done well. It went dormant in the winter. It began blooming again in early spring and all throughout the summer months but it seems to be going dormant now. It does require a whole lot of water in our sandy soil so I don't really think it's worth the trouble if you don't have an area for it that naturally remains moist.

Some variety will, as even here in tropics we also grows Hydrangea., most of variety didn't grow well, but there are few that do not need chills to set flowers. So far, only H macrophylla succeeded for me, I've tried H involucrata, panniculata, quercifolia, and serratifolia varieties but they just die slowly...