Sunday, August 22, 2010

The Changing Faces of two of my Favorite Hydrangeas


"Change is the only constant." Old Proverb


I thought I might share with you, the changing faces of two of my favorite hydrangeas. In the half-sun of the back garden, white buds first appear on my Oakleaf hydrangea (hydrangea quercifolia) in sultry days of late July.  



Gradually a mix of large white flowers and tiny white stars open on the conical panicles.


When the weather shifts and cools, the small stars shut their eyes and pink seeps into the flowers.



In the sunny front garden, chartreuse flower buds appear on the Pee Gee Hydrangea (paniculata 'P.G. compacta) in late July.


Here the buds shine in the early morning light. 



In the first days of August, the hydrangea flowers are milky white in color.



In mid-August, the mornings are crisp. The white flowers and buds are tinted with the softest blush of pink.


By late October, crusted with frost crystals, the flowers have turned a soft rose color.

4 comments:

  1. Such a beautiful series of pictures. The tranformation of hydrangea panicles is so lovely to behold, I check on mine daily, sometimes twice to make sure I don't miss anything. Great post!

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  2. Those hydrangeas age gracefully in your garden. They are beauties.

    I love the house below. The garden is just too sweet!

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  3. Am I missing something?
    I have never seen that beautiful shade of pink on a PG Hydrangea. Mine have always been closer to peachy rust than pink. Did you tweak the color of
    the image before posting?

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  4. Your photos show how pretty Hydrangea flowers are, especially as they go through their colour sequence. With a long bloom time and showy panicles, they perk the garden up in late summer and into fall. Even now, as mine have turned brown, they add more earthy fall colour.

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