Wildflower Wednesday: A Fine Native Hydrangea

It's hard for me to believe that I've never written about Hydrangea arborescens, it's my favorite hydrangea and the first shrub I planted in this garden 30 years ago. I first saw wild hydrangea while hiking a ridge not too far from my house and thought it was charming and just what was needed in my garden. It was clinging to the side of a slope and towering above it were hardwood trees like the ones at Clay and Limestone.

the sterile flowers stay attached after flowering has finished

Hydrangea arborescens, commonly known as smooth hydrangea or wild hydrangea is a gangly limbed deciduous shrub with large, opposite, toothed leaves and grayish stems. It is native to woodland slopes, hillsides and streambanks in the Eastern US from New York to Florida, west to Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma and Louisiana and as I shared earlier in middle Tennessee woodlands. Some maps show it growing as far west as New Mexico and Arizona, but, I can't corroborate that information. In warmer climates it's happiest in dappled shade with moist soil, but, it is tolerant of damp soil, dry soil and even rocky soil. The fact that it grows so well on slopes indicates to this gardener that drainage is important! So keep that in mind when you plant it. Adequate moisture is an ongoing issue in a middle Tennessee garden all summer long, be prepared to give this plant a big gulp of water every now and then, it can tolerate some dry spells, but don't expect it to flourish if it's dry all the time.
 

planted with Hypericum

Hydrangea arborescens is planted in three different beds. My favorite is the one planted with witch hazels, Hamamelis vernalis and a non native H x intermedia 'Diane'. Also in that section of the bed is a Fothergilla, Oakleaf hydreangea 'Ruby Slippers' and a cultivar H arborescens 'White Dome' they're underplanted with Seersucker sedges, camassias, ex-asters, Trilliums and Green and Gold.

Flat-topped clusters of white flowers (corymbs to 2-6”across) are produced in early summer.

What do I like about this hydrangea and why would I recommend it for your garden?

For lots of little reasons and for two big ones.

Dehiscent seed capsules ripen in October-November

First, I am wild about its "lacecap flowers". They're not as lacy as non native Hydrangea, but there's enough sterile flowers to make me smile. The flat topped clusters of creamy-white fertile and sterile flowers start out pale green and turn to a creamy white and eventually fading to brown in late summer.

The white flowers appear on tips of new growth, so you don't have to worry about winter's harsh blast killing the flower buds. Feel free to cut it back to control growth and encourage stronger stems in early spring.

It took me years to learn to appreciate winter browns, now that I do, I never want to cut back my garden until the very last minute in spring! Just look at what I would miss if I cut the stems of this Hydrangea to nubs in late fall!

nectar and pollen attract pollinators

The second reason I recommend wild hydrangea is for its wildlife value. Planting native plants that have high wildlife value is one of the guiding principles of this garden. Lots of plants are critter friendly, but some are absolutely better than others and those are the ones I plant.

Wild hydrangea has great wildlife value. It's a pollen and nectar source for pollinators and a host plant for two moths, Darapsa versicolor/Hydrangea Sphinx Moth and Olethreutes ferriferana/Hydrangea leaf-tier moth. I keep watching for them, but so far have missed their offspring and the moths.

bees across the flower making it hard to get them and the flower into focus

If you've ever watched a bee race over/work this flower you would guess it has a lot to offer. I love that little carpenter bees (Ceratina spp.), Halictid bees, masked bees (Hylaeus spp.), miscellaneous wasps, mosquitoes, Syrphid flies, thick-headed flies, Muscid flies, dance flies (Empis spp.), tumbling flower beetles, and long-horned beetles (source) also visit the flowers.

Hydrangea arborescens 'White Dome'

Some gardeners think Smooth Hydrangea cultivars are more attractive than the species, they usually like the larger flower heads over the straight species, but, a big flowered cultivar like 'Annabelle' does nothing for me, nor does it look right in my woodland garden. But, if that's one you like go ahead a add it to your garden. If you can't find the straight species, you won't be disappointed with Hydrangea arborescens 'White Dome'. The flower head is also a "lacecap" shape with sterile and fertile flowers and it's equally attractive to pollinators.

 The yellow color of the wild hydrangeas are a perfect complement to the other fall tones

I think of Wild Hydrangea as offering year round appeal, except for very late in winter when I've cut the stems back. But, before long it's greening up and setting buds. The large serrated leaves and tall stems stand up straight and tall in my garden with flowers on every tip. As i shared earlier, they start out green, then they're turn a creamy white and once they're pollinated they fade to a sweet parchment color that lasts all winter.

Wild hydrangea has a nice yellow in the fall, that helps light up a dark corner in a woodland garden and acts as a supporting player to the more dramatic fall gold, reds and oranges. It looks charming with blues, even if it's only a container.

What do you think about its yellow leaves when planted with lilac ex-asters and the red leaves of a Japanese maple and Florida dogwood?

I love it.

source

Do give this native shrub a chance, it's really quite special.

It's a lovely, easy care,  year round pretty shrub.
It tolerates winter's cold blast.
It's a pollinator magnet and host plant.
It makes sense for a woodland garden.
xoxogail

The particulars

Common Name: smooth hydrangea, Wild hydrangea
Type: Deciduous shrub
Family: Hydrangeaceae
Native Range: Eastern United States from New York, into the mid-western states, south to Texas and Florida
Zone: 3 to 9
Height: 3.00 to 5.00 feet, occasionally to ten feet
Spread: 3.00 to 5.00 feet
Bloom Time: May/June to September
Flower: Flat-topped clusters (4 to 6 inches across) of small white flowers, larger sterile flowers may be present along edges of cluster, appearing in early summer. Flowers on new growth.
Fruit: Dry, light brown capsules appearing in early fall
Sun: Part shade, dappled sunlight, full sun with moist soil 
Water: Medium
Soil: clay soil, wet, dry, shallow and/or rocky soil. Acid to neutral ph.
Maintenance: Low, prune in late spring to control growth, can colonize
Suggested Use: Naturalize, Rain Garden, woodland garden, edge of woods, massing, stabilizing a hillside or slope.
Comments: Showy cultivars that I like 'Ryan Gainey' and 'White Dome', check to make sure you get a cultivar that is not just showy sterile flowers. There are two pink cultivars, but, I am not sure if they are just sterile flower heads. Its roots have been used for hundreds of years in folk and Native American medicine for the treatment of various ailments

Thank you for stopping by and welcome to Clay and Limestone's Wildflower Wednesday celebration. WW is about sharing and celebrating wildflowers from all over this great big, beautiful world. Join us on the fourth Wednesday of each month. Remember, it doesn't matter if they are in bloom or not; and, it doesn't matter if we all share the same plants. It's all about celebrating wildflowers. Please leave a comment when you add your url to Mr Linky.


Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.

Got Wildflowers! Lucky Pollinators!

A Fab Fabiaceae with a tiny pollinator

This past weekend was the big test! The first of the wildflower sales in Middle Tennessee with tempting flowers and shrubs! Cheekwood Art and Gardens, the closest we have to a botanical center, had it's annual wildflower sale benefiting the Howe Wildflower Garden (17th sale). In those early years I met many new wildflowers~Not so much anymore, but, I always come home with a few surprises.

Pollinator nectaring on Great Blue Lobelia

You may be wondering if I was able to keep the plant buying guidelines I put together way back in January? Here they are~in case any of us forgot them~

• Will they survive the difficult conditions at Clay and Limestone?
• Is this plant a nectar or pollen source for pollinators?
• Is it a host plant for pollinators?
• Is this plant available locally, therefore, more likely to survive the extremes of the Central Basin?
• Will this plant add to the diversity of my pollinator friendly garden?
• Is there a native plant that makes more sense than that seductive exotic?

Baptisia australis with pollinator

Guidelines are easy to compile on a cold winter day. A wildflower fair, on a cool, sunny Spring morning is an altogether different challenge. It's a great big tempting carrot to dangle in front of any gardener. Even a gardener with resolve.

Shooting Star/Dodecatheon meadia

I am happy to report, that our heroine kept those guidelines in mind the entire time~Kept them in mind when she walked past the Swamp Azaleas three times and did not grab them all! Kept them in mind when she walked past swamp anything! Kept those guidelines in mind as she added a few that pushed the Central Basin guidelines! Kept them in mind when she added the following native lovelies to the pile. Here's what was added!

• Lobelia siphilitica: One accidentally arrived to C and L with a new aster and it's a keeper. But more were needed. Blooming a lovely blue in the August, it was a bee magnet; survived the droughty summer; and, tolerated the wet winter. The flowers attract long-tongued bees primarily, including Little Carpenter bees, Miner bees, Mason bees, and Leaf-Cutting bees. Small butterflies and skippers also visit the flowers.
• Dodecatheon meadia: A Central Basin native, Shooting Star thrives at C and L. The preference is full or partial sun, and moist to slightly dry soil. Queen bumblebees and Carpenter Bees are the most typical visitors. They use 'buzz pollination'; that a rapid vibration of their thoracic muscles to get pollen from the flowers. Anthophorine bees, Eucerine Miner bees, and Green Metallic bees also visit. All of these insects collect pollen, as the flowers offer no nectar reward.
• Campanulastrum americanum: American Bellflower is a Central Basin beauty that I have wanted to get established in the garden for years. Long-tongued bees are the primary pollinators of the flowers, including bumblebees and large Leaf-Cutting bees. Other visitors of the flowers include Halictid bees, butterflies, and skippers. These insects seek nectar, and some of the bees collect pollen from the anthers. Syrphid flies may feed on the pollen, but they are not effective pollinators. Deer occasionally eat the flowers and foliage. (source)

American Bellflower/Campanulastrum americanum

• Thermopsis villosa: A terrific legume, that can take the heat. Lovely spikes of large deep yellow flowers on foot long racemes from May-June. Host plant for Wild Indigo Duskywing Butterfly caterpillars.

• Chionanthus virginicus: Fringe tree is found from eastern Texas and southern Missouri eastward to the Atlantic Coast and north to Ohio and Pennsylvania. Trees grow in moist wooded areas, swamp borders, rocky bluffs, streams and outcroppings. It grows in the Central Basin in areas with richer, deeper soils. Fringe tree fruits are among the favorite foods of wild turkeys, blue jays, cardinals and mockingbirds. White-tailed deer and other animals browse the foliage.
• Echinacea pallida: A Tennessee native, but, not a native of Davidson County. Long-tongued bees (Carpenter bees, Bumbles, Leaf cutting bees) butterflies, and skippers are the most important visitors to the flowers. Occasionally small bees like Green Metalic bees, Short-tongued Green Metallic bees and other Halictine bees also visit the flowers occasionally. The caterpillars of the butterfly Silvery Checkerspot feed on the foliage, as do the caterpillars of the moths Wavy-Lined Emerald and Common Eupithecia. Goldfinches eat the seeds.
• Euonymus americanus: I love this marvelous semi evergreen native with its spindly branches and gorgeous seeds that bust open each fall. I have several but, thought a few more would make a nice showing. The inconspicuous flowers attract small bees and flies. The foliage is eaten by the caterpillars of the moths. Birds including~the Northern Flicker, Brown Thrasher, Catbird, Eastern Bluebird, Cardinal, and Eastern Towhee eat the fruit to a limited extent (Source: Morton Arboretum). These birds help to spread the seeds in the fruits to new locations. White-Tailed Deer browse on the leaves and young shoots.

Hearts-A-Bustin/Eunymous americanus

• Silene carolina: Grow in average, dry to medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. Prefers sunny sites in dryish sandy or gravelly soils with some part afternoon shade. Plants are best left undisturbed once established. Requires excellent drainage. Just reading this description and you know that I am pushing the envelope!
• Trillium luteum: A sweet lemon scented Tennessee native that was happy in my garden until a wall decided it needed to be built right on top of it! Bees, carrion flies and others have been observed visiting the blooms and ants are known to aid seed dispersal (myrmecochory).

The next test is in April! Wish this pollinator friendly wildlife gardener much luck!
xxoogail

PS Because it bears repeating~ If you want to attract pollinators~Never, never, never, ever, use pesticides in your garden.


This post is part of a series on native pollinators in the garden~ Earlier posts and their links are listed below for your convenience.

Part I~Now Is The Time To Bee-gin Thinking About Bees ( here)
This Is The Place To Bee ( here)
If You Could Plant Only One Plant In Your Garden~Don't (here)
Must Bee The Season of The Witch (here)
Go Bare In Your Garden (here)
We can't All be pretty Pollinators (here)
Eye, Eye Skipper, Big Eyed Pollinators (here)
What's In Your Garden (here)
Carpenter Bees (here)

Other bee posts you might want to read~
Count Yourself Lucky To Have Hoverflies (here)
Bumblebee Hotel (here)
Still Taking Care Of Bzzness (here)
My Sweet Embraceable You (here)



This post was written by Gail Eichelberger for my blog Clay and Limestone Copyright 2011.This work protected under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Please contact me for permission to copy, reproduce, scrape, etc.