Susan Durisek’s blog

            Hydrangeas   

 Every once in a while, you’ll catch a glimpse of what looks like a heap of big baseballs in a bush.  On second glance, you’ll discover … AHA! … it’s really hydrangea.  White blooming mopheads, classics that grandma planted around the foudation of her house, sometimes turn  blue or pink as the pH of the soil changes, create a striking display.  New and popular cultivars include Oak Leaf hydrangeas, with a more conical-shaped flower head, and the delicate lace-fringed varieties, with larger flowers creating a halo around a tighter central cluster.  To study the range of flowers available, you can find heaps of hydrangeas at Wilkerson Mill Farm,  www.hydrangea.com.   They include ’Hunker Down’, the photo of which was shot at former Georgia football coach Vince Dooley’s home.  Dooley has taken up cultivating hydrangeas lately, and was in Lexington last fall, giving a lecture on just that topic.  If you’re going to buy one, though, be sure that the cultivar you choose is hardy in USDA hardiness zone 6.