Expect to Pay A Bundle For Large (Older) Hydrangea Plants

I’ve found that online shipping services will ship small shrubs at a relatively cheap price.   But if you want a big plant, head to the bank because you will pay lots for larger hydrangea plants.

If you’ve never ordered perennials online, you might be very surprised at what arrives on the truck. Because of the stress on the plants during shipping, the plants will be mostly dormant and without flowers – some may be just roots and not potted. In fact they could look pretty dead to you, but don’t worry, if you follow the instructions included, they will perk up once they are in the ground where they should be happy.

I’ve ordered plants other than hydrangeas, so this will be my first try. I ordered an “All Summer Beauty” hydrangea from American Meadows who says that shipping will be the week of September 19th for my area. It’s costing me $9.98 and will come in a 4 inch pot. They say I will get an e-mail telling me when to expect it.

If you are looking for the chance to choose from a huge variety of hydrangeas to purchase, check out Hydrangeas Plus.  You can search by planting zone, size (age), container flowers, biggest blooms and other.  I’ve never bought anything from them, but it looks like a promising site.

They sell hydrangea plants as “1 Year” “2 Year” and “3 Year”. Their one year, All Summer Beauty was out of stock, so I couldn’t check the price, but some of their two year blues were “$18.95. the three year old plants in blue (that were available) were priced around $39.95. In their FAQ section they explain what the age difference means and what to expect from each. (Check out the timeline photos of mine below.)

Here are the photos from 2010 and 2011 of a new little hydrangea that I propagated from a large shrub in the yard at my old rental place.
I don’t have a picture of when it was first planted in 2009, but I cut it from a large plant where it had rooted itself from a branch hanging near the ground.
These pictures show it’s growth in the first Spring (2010) up to this summer (2011) just before I moved out.

There were no blooms during it’s first year in the new spot near the steps. Only two long stalks developed and I suspect that the roots were getting established.

Then, this summer, lots of growth appeared and bunches of small, light blue flowers.

Read more about the new “baby” hydrangea that I grew at my old rental house.

Related articles

• Endless Summer Hydrangeas For Northern Gardens (hydrangeasblue.wordpress.com)
• Hydrangea Bouquets (hydrangeasblue.wordpress.com)
• More Pictures of Blue Hydrangeas (hydrangeasblue.wordpress.com)