^ "Hydrangea quercifolia (Oak Leaf Hydrangea, Oakleaf Hydrangea) | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox".^ "RHS Plantfinder - Hydrangea quercifolia Snow Queen='Flemygea' ".^ Alice Coats, Garden Shrubs and Their Histories (1964) 1992, s.v.^ "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin".^ "Hydrangea quercifolia - Plant Finder".Hydrangea quercifolia was declared the official state wildflower of Alabama in 1999. Propagation is via cutting or division short sections of clustered stems with some root attached will make a small shrub in a nursery row.įresh or dry, the blossoms of Hydrangea quercifolia are attractive as cut flowers. Its hardiness is USDA Zones 5–9, with 'Snow Queen' hardy to Zone 5, while some other cultivars may not be. In the UK the cultivars Snowflake=‘Brido’ and Snow Queen=‘Flemygea’ have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. It prefers slightly acidic soils with a pH of 5.0–6.5. It will tolerate drought, but may not flower.
#Oak leaf hydrangea full
It prefers partial to almost full shade, with morning sun and afternoon shade as optimal. Though frequently seen as an isolated subject in gardens, it is at its best in a natural or landscaped woodland habitat against the backdrop of larger shrubs and trees. Hydrangea quercifolia is cultivated as an ornamental plant in gardens and parks. In Britain it flowers less profusely and even has a reputation for being tender. It was slow to enter British and American gardens. Hydrangea quercifolia was noted by 18th-century botanist William Bartram in his botanizing exploration from the Carolinas to the Florida panhandle in the 1770s.
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Hydrangea quercifolia is native to the south eastern United States (Alabama, Florida, Georgia (w.), Louisiana (e.), Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee), but naturalized in other parts of the US and widely cultivated elsewhere. Hydrangea quercifolia and Hydrangea paniculata are the only hydrangeas with cone-shaped flower clusters all the others have their flowers in ball-shaped or flat-topped clusters, called umbels. Unlike bigleaf hydrangea ( Hydrangea macrophylla), flower color does not vary with soil pH. Flowers age in colour from creamy white, aging to pink and by autumn and winter are a dry, papery rusty-brown. Hydrangea quercifolia flowers are borne in erect panicles 6–12 in (15.2–30.5 cm) tall and 3–5 in (7.6–12.7 cm) wide at branch tips.
![oak leaf hydrangea oak leaf hydrangea](https://i1.wp.com/www.gardeningknowhow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/oakleaf-bloom.jpg)
The leaves turn rich shades of red, bronze and purple in autumn that persist in winter accompanying the persistent dried flower-heads. Plants in shade have larger leaves than those grown in sun.
![oak leaf hydrangea oak leaf hydrangea](https://www.heritageflowerfarm.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Hydrangea-querci.jpg)
They vaguely resemble larger versions of oak leaves, similar to Quercus species with lobed foliage. They have three, five or seven pointed lobes and are 4–12 in (10.2–30.5 cm) long and almost as wide. The leaves are yellowish green to dark green on top and silvery-white underneath. Young stems are covered in a felt-like light brown bark, and the larger stems have attractive cinnamon-tan-orange bark that shreds and peels in thin flakes. The plant sprouts shoots from underground stolons and often grows in colonies. Hydrangea quercifolia is a coarse-textured deciduous shrub growing to 3–12 feet (0.91–3.66 m) tall with an open crown.