Hydrangea Pics: 4202HydrangeaquercifoliaSnowQueen.jpg

Hydrangea (/ha?'dre?nd?i?/;common labels hydrangea or hortensia) is a genus of 70-75 varieties of flowering plants local to southern and eastern Asia (China, Japan, Korea, the Himalayas, and Indonesia) and the Americas. Definitely the greatest varieties diversity is in eastern Asia, china notably, Japan, and Korea. The majority are shrubs 1 to 3 meters extra tall, however, many are small trees, and more lianas getting up to 30 m (98 foot) by climbing up trees and shrubs. They could be either deciduous or evergreen, though the generally cultivated temperate types are all deciduous.Having been introduced to the Azores, H. macrophylla is quite typical now, particularly on Faial, which is recognized as the "blue island" due to the vast number of hydrangeas present on the island.Life cycleHydrangea blossoms are produced from planting season to late fall; they develop in flowerheads (corymbs or panicles) most often at the ends of the stems.

Typically the flowerheads contain two types of flowers: small non-showy blossoms in the center or interior of the flowerhead, and large, showy bouquets with large colorful sepals (tepals). These showy flowers are lengthened in a engagement ring often, or to the surface of the tiny flowers. Vegetation in outdoors populations typically have few to none of the showy plants, while cultivated hydrangeas have been bred and selected to have significantly more of the bigger type blooms.There are two flower arrangements in hydrangeas with Corymb style inflorescens, which include the commonly grown "bigleaf hydrangea"--Hydrangea macrophylla. Mophead blooms are large circular flowerheads resembling pom-poms or, as the name means, the comparative brain of a mop. In contrast, lacecap flowers bear round, flat flowerheads with a center core of subdued, small blooms encircled by outer wedding rings of much larger bouquets having showy tepals or sepals.

The blossoms of some viburnums and rhododendrons can look, at first glance, just like those of some hydrangeas.Colors and garden soil acidityIn most varieties the blooms are white, however in some varieties (notably H. macrophylla), can be blue, red, red, light crimson, or dark purple. In these kinds the colour is afflicted by the existence of metal ions which can be found or tangled up depending after the earth pH. For H. macrophylla and H. serrata cultivars, the flower color can be determined by the relative acidity of the soil: an acidic soil (pH below 7), will have available aluminum ions and typically produce flowers that are blue to purple, whereas an alkaline soil (pH above 7) will tie up aluminum ions and lead to pink or red flowers.

This is the effect of a color change of the bloom pigments in the existence of aluminium ions that can be adopted into hyperaccumulating crops.[6] Bringing down the pH of potting soils or mixes usually will not change the blossom color to blue, because these soils haven't any aluminum ions. The ability to blue or green a hydrangea is affected by the cultivar also. Some plants are selected for his or her ability to be blued, while some are bred and selected to be red, white or pink. The flower color of all other Hydrangea species is not affected by aluminum and cannot be changed or shifted. Hydrangeas also have a nickname called 'Change Rose'.