Oakleaf Hydrangea Care and Maintenance Easily

Native to the southeastern part of the country, Oakleaf Hydrangeas successfully attract many people for all year long. This Hydrangea variety will bloom in spring and early summer. when they are young, the panicle flowers are greenish-white. As they age, the flowers will be subtle shades of pink and brown.

Having a good function as a foundation plant, of course you want to plant it around your garden or yard, don’t you? Of course, if you have a plan to grow Oakleaf Hydrangea throughout your garden, you surely should know how to take care of this flower. If not, sure this plant will not grow well.

Thankfully! This post will guide you to care for your Oakleaf Hydrangea with a bunch of tips below!

Here’s what you should do in taking care for Oakleaf Hydrangea!

Plant your Oakleaf Hydrangea in slightly acidic soils

Make sure to plant Oakleaf Hydrangea in well-draining, rich with slightly acidic soils. If you are in areas with heavy clay, take your time to improve your soil when you plant this shrub for the first time.

Pennington Fast Acting Gypsum really helps you to increase water penetration and drainage as well as loosens the compacted soil and encourages good root growth. Enriched Vitamin B1, Pennington UltraGreen Plant Starter also assists you to reduce transplant shock. In addition, ensure to plant Oakleaf Hydrangea in plenty of compost areas.

Keep the soils stays evenly moist

Need to know, Oakleaf Hydrangea naturally needs moist soil but never soggy. Well, what you should do is to water your plant in enough volume, not overwatering. If your plant is in a sunny area which potentially receives more sunlight, perhaps, the more water will be needed.

After watering your Oakleaf Hydrangea, you need to check the soil by hand before watering again. However, this way can prevent root rot. If the soil is wet, you should wait a few days and check again. You can take a great option by blanketing the ground with a thick layer of mulch to help maintain soil moisture.

Place your Oakleaf Hydrangea in half-shade

In northern regions, Oakleaf Hydrangea will really grow well in full sun to shade. While, in the southern zone, this plant needs to get the protection from the intense afternoon sun, in the morning sun, give them enough light. However, too much shade will reduce the intensity of the fall color.

Sure, in their native habitat, this plant is an understory plant, so they really appreciate some afternoon shade especially in southern climates where full share is totally needed.

Fertilize your Oakleaf Hydrangeas sufficiently

Generally, the Hydrangeas do not need much fertilizer or not at all especially if you are mulching over the root zone. You surely have to give enough fertilizer. Perhaps when growing in alkaline soils, occasional feeding with acidic fertilizers will be of great benefit.

We recommend you to use Pennington UltraGreen All Purpose Plant Food 10-10-10 at planting time. You can begin by giving them nutrition that they really need. Fertilize your Oakleaf in early spring each year with the same fertilizer or with the fertilizer that we’ve mentioned previously. Afterwards, you can fertilize agair four months laters in the middle of summer. Read also : Hydrangea fertilizer recommendations.

Make sure to observe the humidity and temperature

Oakleaf Hydrangea commonly grows well in climate conditions throughout its hardiness range (zones 5 – 9). However, the winter damage to flowers buds probably occur in the colder part of the range especially with young shrubs.

Well, those are plenty of tips to care for your Oakleaf Hydrangea. Ensure to take all ways above if you really want to take care for your Oakleaf Hydrangea. Do the ways above step by step to get a desirable goal. Good Luck!

Is Pruning Important for Oakleaf Hydrangea?

Oakleaf Hydrangea commonly require little pruning, unless you try to place them in small containers or areas. This variety will shoot up to 10 feet in ideal conditions that may allow you to prune it. You may already know that Oakleaf is a shrub which blooms on old wood, so when pruning is needed, take it as soon as possible after it’s done flowering.

You can also cut damaged or diseased branches whenever they appear. As the plant spreads through suckering, well, to control the spread of the shrub, you may need to remove spreading ground shoots. For further details you can read also how to prune oakleaf hydrangea well.

How to Propagate Oakleaf Hydrangea?

Because spreading through suckering, sure, to make them well controlled, you should prune the plant regularly. Aside from that, Oakleaf Hydrangea will be successfully propagated through stem cuttings. To do it, you should cut two to four cuttings from green stem tips which have no flowers. In the way of stem cuttings, ensure the cuttings have at least one growth node.

Then, you also need to trim the top half off the leaves. Dip the end of the cuttings and rooting hormone and plant the cuttings in moist and sterile soils. Put the planted cuttings in a plastic bag to avoid it from the direct sunlight. Ensure the soil is still moist, not soggy. Well, the root growth must be sufficient to transplant the plant into the garden within about 12 weeks or into a larger pot for continued growth.

Knowing for Oakleaf Hydrangeas Varieties

Oakleaf Hydrangea comes with plenty of varieties based on its size including tall, medium and compact. Each size has different characteristics although they are almost the same if at a glance. Here’s a list of all Oakleaf Hydrangea varieties!

Compact Varieties