WHAT HYDRANGEAS ARE HARDY AND WHAT HYDRANGEAS ARE THE MOST RELIABLE BLOOMERS?
Hydrangeas have made a comeback as a must-have landscape and garden plant, but, as many gardeners have discovered the hard way, many of the old varieties commonly available in garden centers are not particularly hardy or even vigorous growers, and often fail to bloom reliably every year. For many years the hardiest Hydrangea was Hydrangea paniculata PeeGee, which allowed gardeners in Zones 4 and 5 to at least have a hydrangea. Unfortunately, PeeGee is a notorious flopper and the shrub often collapses under its own weight and does not produce the massive display of blooms and colors that we see with the less hardy varieties. But now, thanks to the hard work of breeders around the world, gardeners in Zone 3, 4 and 5 have some fantastic hardy Hydrangea choices.
