Category: Landscape Plants

The Petiolaris is a Climbing Hydrangea

Hydrangea petiolaris photo by Bruger:Sten
Image via Wikipedia

I am unfamiliar with the climbing form of hydrangea, or at least I was before I researched it for this blog post.  I will be moving soon into a house of my own where I plan to do lots of gardening so I need to know what is available for my area of the country.  I live in growing zone 5 so my plants have to be able to withstand cold and lots of snow cover.  Always check before you buy plants online to make sure they are suitable for your area.

The petiolaris, or climbing hydrangea plant, can be used as a ground cover as well as a climber.  The blooms are white and lacey looking and show up around the month of June and the leaves are heart-shaped and green.  If you want this flowering vine to climb, then plant it near a sturdy structure that will be able to bear the weight of the full grown bush which can be up to 50 feet in height… yikes!  That is big, so think long term when planting this one.  It likes shade or semi-shaded areas which is good to know since my new yard will be surrounded by trees and I’m assuming will be quite shady most of the day.

I like the idea of planting it to cover an unsightly tree stump (I have a tall one in my new yard) or some other part of the yard that isn’t very nice looking.  According to what I’ve read, it takes a year or two to get established and then it takes off and grows like crazy.

Scroll down this page at Dave’s Garden site and read what people who are growing this plant have to say.

Check with local nurseries to purchase.

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Give Shrubs Plenty of Space

Our Home / Virginia Creeper
Image by bill barber via Flickr

Any time you add a new shrub or tree to the landscape, it needs to be planted in an area where it will have all it needs to thrive, including plenty of space to spread out.

How many times have you seen a yard with huge plantings covering the front of the house.  Windows might be blocked or walkways overgrown so badly that it makes you wonder why on earth those big plants were put there.  The simple answer is that the size of the plantings were not taken into consideration.

When you come home from the nursery, most likely you will be carrying a fairly small and manageable bush.  It may be difficult to imagine that one day it will be 4 feet wide, but if that is what the tag says (or your research), then you must plan accordingly. Before you leave the plant stand, ask someone if you aren’t sure what you are buying. There is always the internet too.

No amount of trimming will help if your hydrangea shrub is too close to the house. The natural beauty will be hindered if it can’t grown the way it was meant to. In fact planting near a foundation is a bad idea anyway, so find a nice sunny spot in the yard to put your hydrangea and make sure that you have a hose that will reach it for those dry days.

There are many types of hydrangeas and for the most part you can plan on them growing at least 3-4 feet in all directions, but chick on the type you want to grow to be sure because some will grow much larger.

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Ground Work Will Pay Off

Summer Cottage Garden print
Garden Flowers

The non-glamorous part of yard work is the ground work.

You didn’t know there was a glamorous side to yard work?  To me the glamorous – aka “fun”- is in finding a gorgeous new plant at the nursery that I know will look perfect in just the spot I am thinking of.  It’s the moment when I pick up the little ( or big ) bucket that holds a small version of what will one day be a lovely, mature shrub.   I know that it will end up living a long life in my yard, giving me years of enjoyment, while I tend to it and watch it grow.  Others who pass by or visit will most likely enjoy it too.  I look forward to digging the hole, carefully setting it in and then it will be my glamorous addition to the yard.

Back to the ground work.  Although this area of gardening is not my favorite it is so important that it can’t be overlooked.  The dirt must be ready for those plants you wish to have grow for many years.

If the garden is being created from lawn, dig it up with a pitchfork (ouch) or buy (rent) a rototiller.  Buy an inexpensive soil test kit , or test meter, and test the soil in your garden for acidity.  Knowing if the soil is too acidic or too alkaline will give you the opportunity to amend it if that needs to be done for growing happy plants.  Any soil that is too much one way or the other inhibits the plants’ ability to use nutrients from the soil for good growth.  No matter how much you water and care for your plant, if it simply can’t use those nutrients, it will not flourish.

Decide what you want to grow and amend the soil to accommodate those plants.  If the soil tests at mid-level (6.5-7.0 pH), then you are fine.  I like to grow a variety of flowering shrubs and annuals, but if you are planning a rose garden, you should make sure the all-over soil is right to grow them.  Hydrangeas, along with Rhododendrons and Azaleas like acid soil (a pH of 5.0 – 5.8) and in the northeast where I live, the soil tends to be acidic.

Any local garden shop will be able to help you find the right amendments and read the packaging for how and when to use them.  I always add bonemeal to the garden in the Spring and a little in the hole of new plantings, because it helps build strong roots.

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