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Hydrangea Early Blue is a relatively young variety, bred by Dutch breeders in 2006. Distinctive features of this variety are lush flowering, longevity and good disease resistance. The frost resistance of the variety is average.
Description of hydrangea Early Blue
Hydrangea large-leaved Early Blue is a medium-sized ornamental shrub with a spherical crown type. The height of the plant can reach 100-120 cm, the diameter of the bushes is also about 120 cm. The lifespan of the plant is 18-20 years.
Early Blue hydrangea blooms on last year's shoots and current year's shoots, forming lush spherical inflorescences. The size of each of them can reach 20-30 cm. The color of the flowers varies from blue to violet-pink tones, and flowering lasts from July to September.
The leaves of the Early Blue variety are large and jagged at the edges. The surface of the leaf plate is smooth to the touch and shiny. The color is dark green.
The flowers of the variety are collected in fairly dense inflorescences
Hydrangea Early Blue in landscape design
The scope of application of the variety is quite universal. Hydrangea Early Blue is perfect for both solitary plantings and group compositions. You can grow shrubs in ridges and rockeries.
A distinctive feature of the Early Blue variety is its developed root system. This quality allows it to be planted in containers that are removed indoors for the winter.
The base of the flowerbed can be planted with low-growing crops, which will act as an edging
Winter hardiness of hydrangea Early Blue
The winter hardiness of this garden crop is average. Hydrangea Early Blue winters safely in regions with warm climates without shelter, but in middle and northern latitudes it is better to cover the bushes with the onset of cold weather.
You can cover the plantings with spruce branches and agrofibre, after tying the shoots together. Young seedlings are sprinkled with fallen leaves and sawdust. Older plants sometimes need to be bent to the ground, but this should be done very carefully so as not to break the shoots.
Planting and caring for large-leaved Early Blue hydrangea
The process of planting hydrangea varieties Early Blue includes the most standard procedures. Caring for the plant is also easy - the whole process comes down to timely watering and fertilizing. Bushes should be pruned once or twice a season.
Selection and preparation of a landing site
Preference should be given to well-lit areas, but plants should not be exposed to the scorching sun all day. The shrub develops best in conditions of moderate shade.
Recommended soil type is acidic and semi-acidic. High lime content in the soil can provoke the development of a number of diseases.
A few weeks before planting hydrangeas, it is recommended to dig up the area chosen for the flower bed and adjust its composition. To do this, add a mixture of humus, peat, leaf soil and river sand to the soil in a ratio of 2:1:2:1.
If the soil acidity is above 4, the seedlings will form pink flowers. In order for them to be blue, the soil is acidified with potassium alum once a week. You can also change the color of flowers by adding iron filings to the area around the trunk.
Landing rules
Early Blue hydrangea is planted according to this scheme:
- First, dig a hole about 50 cm deep and about 40 cm in diameter.
- If the soil on the site is clayey, then drainage must be placed at the bottom of the dug hole: small pebbles, expanded clay, broken brick.
- Then the pit is filled with a mixture of fallen pine needles, humus, high-moor peat and light garden soil in a ratio of 1:1:2:2. If the area was previously dug up with the addition of fertilizers, the amount of garden soil in this composition is increased to half of the total volume.
- After this, the hydrangea seedling is dipped in a container of water for a couple of hours.
- The prepared planting material must be placed in the center of the hole so that its neck is not too deep. The root system is sprinkled with the remains of the soil mixture.
- Then the area around the trunk circle is lightly compacted so that the roots are well pressed and no voids form around them.
- The soil compacted under the plant is watered generously.
- Complete the planting procedure with mulching. To do this, use fallen pine needles, wood chips or peat.
Recommended planting pattern for hydrangea – 1x1 m
Watering and fertilizing
In order for the Early Blue variety to bloom magnificently, the shrub needs a lot of moisture - the soil around the plant should not dry out or crack. The rest is based on local climatic conditions. In this case, it is best to take settled rainwater from a barrel standing in the sun to water the hydrangea.
Too hard water is softened with a small amount of citric acid.
If the hydrangea has formed pink flowers, the water for irrigation is diluted with potassium alum (5 g of the substance per 2 liters of water). You can also use special compounds to acidify the soil.
Effectively oxidizes soil Acid plus
The first feeding of the Early Blue variety is carried out in the spring. For these purposes, it is better to use special mineral complexes intended for hydrangeas. The second feeding is carried out during the flowering period. The third - in September, shortly before the end of flowering. Additionally, you can add humus under the hydrangea.
If the pink color of the flowers is preferable to blue, then maintaining the alkalinity of the soil will help preserve it. To do this, add wood ash under the bushes and water the plantings with a solution based on dolomite flour.
Pruning Hydrangea largeleaf Early Blue
It is better not to prune hydrangea for the first 2-3 years. Only dried branches are removed.
When the bushes grow, pruning is carried out to the first living bud, cutting off the old inflorescences that were left to overwinter. According to the time of year, it is better to form hydrangea in the spring.
Preparing for winter
Preparations for the winter season begin by spraying the bushes with Bordeaux mixture - this will prevent the plants from damping off under cover. Then they proceed according to this scheme:
- The area around the tree trunk is sprinkled with peat so that a small hill is formed.
- Fir branches are placed on this elevation.
- If the shoots of the bush are tall, then they must be carefully bent to the ground and securely fixed in place. You can use a wire frame for this.
- Place non-woven material on top of the bent branches and sprinkle it with compost soil.
- To protect from precipitation, hydrangea is covered with roofing felt.
If the branches of the bush have become too rigid and it is no longer possible to bend them, it is better to tie them together, placing them with spruce branches. Then this bundle is wrapped with agrofibre and film.
Reproduction
The Early Blue variety is propagated by dividing the bush, layering, root suckers and summer cuttings. One of the simplest methods of breeding is the creation of layering.
The whole process in this case looks like this:
- In early May, several fairly flexible branches are bent from an adult bush.
- The ends of the shoots are fixed in a small depression on the ground. Additionally, they are secured in a bent position using small metal staples. The depth of the hole should be approximately 15 cm.
- Where the shoots come into contact with the ground, the leaves are cleared from them. It is also recommended to scrape this area of the branches with a knife to “start” the process of root formation.
- After this, the hole is covered with earth.
From time to time, the layerings are watered, carefully maintaining soil moisture. By autumn they should have formed their root system, then they are cut off and placed in containers for the winter. Planting in a permanent place is carried out in the spring of next year.
Diseases and pests
Early Blue hydrangea rarely gets sick, but occasionally plantings can be affected by fungus, infectious diseases and pests.
If the leaves of a bush suddenly begin to turn yellow, but the veins on them remain green, this means that the plantings have been affected by chlorosis.
Additional symptoms:
- curling of leaves along the edge;
- leaf fall;
- deformation of buds;
- drying of shoots at the ends.
Chlorosis Hydrangea develops if the shrub was planted in an area with alkaline soil. To eliminate the symptoms, it is necessary to increase the acidity of the soil with solutions containing potassium nitrate.
To treat chlorosis, ferrous sulfate can be used to treat
Downy mildew - another dangerous disease to which the Early Blue variety is vulnerable. The disease can be identified by oily spots on hydrangea leaves, which turn yellow over time. In the later stages of the disease, the affected areas of the leaf blade darken.
Treatment of plantings is carried out using any fungicidal agents.
If the bush suddenly begins to turn yellow, you should carefully examine the leaves of the plant from the underside. If they are covered with a thin web, it means that the flowerbed has been infected by a spider mite. Any insecticide from a gardening store will help you cope with the pest.
Actellik has proven itself well in the fight against spider mites
Conclusion
Hydrangea Early Blue is a very unpretentious shrub with average frost resistance, which is perfect for planting in central Russia. The inflorescences of the variety can be used for cutting and making dry bouquets.
You can learn more about how to grow Early Blue hydrangea from the video:
