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Hydrangeas are a very popular landscape plant, prized for their abundant blooms and easy care. There are four categories of hydrangeas. These are Hydrangea macrophylla, commonly called Big Leaf, Mophead or Lacecap hydrangeas; Hydrangea arborescence, which includes “Annabelle” and its relatives, also known as Smooth hydrangeas; Hydrangea quercifolia, also known as Oakleaf hydrangeas; and finally, Hydrangea paniculata, which are commonly called PeeGee hydrangeas.

turn pink as they age.Big Leaf hydrangeas are some of the most popular hydrangeas in landscapes. Annabelle hydrangeas have large white blooms which often reach up to ten inches in diameter. Annabelle hydrangeas bloom on new wood, and should not be pruned in the spring while they Oak leaf hydrangeas should be pruned at the same time and in the same manner as the Big Leaf hydrangeas.Like the oak leaf hydrangeas, PeeGee’s white blooms tend to

If your hydrangea has blue blooms, amending the soil to make it more alkaline will change the blooms to pink. Likewise, a pink hydrangea may be changed to blue by increasing the acidity of the soil. The presence of aluminum in the soil will make a hydrangea bloom blue. Hydrangeas planted near concrete sidewalks or a concrete foundation are more likely to produce pink blossoms. Hydrangeas make excellent cut flowers and the dried blooms make beautiful arrangements. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to dry hydrangea blooms that have been cut at their peak of color.

It’s also much less expensive than buying seeds each spring, and seeds saved from your plants will be well suited to the peculiarities of your own garden’s growing conditions. Save seeds only from vigorous, healthy plants. So don’t save seeds from a plant that is obviously diseased or has struggled all season. It is not recommended to save seeds from hybrid plants.

Many seed catalogs will identify which of their seeds are hybrids or open pollinated. If you intend to save your own seed, always start with open pollinated seeds. Cross pollination is another concern for the seed-saving gardener. Cross pollination often results in seeds which have a different genetic makeup than that of the parent plant.

Seeds should be collected on a dry, sunny day. Frost doesn’t hurt most seed as long as the seed remains dry. First the seeds must be separated from the pulp, and then dried. Scoop the seeds from these vegetables, pulp and all. It’s very important to keep the seed dry during storage. Store your dry seeds in tightly sealed jars, metal film containers, or old vitamin bottles.

Be sure to label your jars and envelopes so when spring comes around again you’ll know which flower seeds and vegetable seeds you’re planting, and include the date the seeds were collected. Try saving some vegetable or flower seeds from your garden this year and grow them next season.