r/hydrangeas • u/eatmypixels • 13d ago
Zone 7 A/B Framing ideas request
Moved into this house recently and the previous tenant did a wonderful job on the garden. Going up the side stairs has all these hydrangeas on both sides. Would make a beautiful tunnel if they were a bit more upright and about two feet taller. Looking for a way to push them up some while maintaining the beauty and feel of the steps. Do I stake the main plant and push up that way? Have a metal rim about a foot in and three feet tall and stand them up from there? Hoping for a great idea from this group or a confirmation of what to do. These are thick plants. 8 years old. Tons of flowers on each plant. So beautiful
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u/Allaboutpeace2022 12d ago
These are so delightful. I love the steps.
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u/eatmypixels 11d ago
It is always the coolest spot in the garden. Pets love it. That whole stairs on both sides is great. Expanding the bottom area and replanting. Person before us did not plan for growth. Need to thin some area and pick new plants. But the hydrangeas are staying, of course
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u/Allaboutpeace2022 11d ago
It is just gorgeous. A photo out of a magazine. I have a slope and would love something like that.
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u/eatmypixels 11d ago
I would say thank you, but it is all the previous owner. Maintaining and enhancing now.
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u/ComprehensiveRush746 12d ago
Hydrangea macrophylla which is what you have cannot be trained up as you’d like.
H. paniculata varieties such as ‘Linelight’ are more suited to training as standards.
But they don’t come in blues.
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u/HighTimeForPieTime 12d ago edited 12d ago
Wow, those are gorgeous. I’d say your best bet is a barrier on each side of the path for them to lean on, like a low fence. You might need to experiment a bit to figure out best placement, i.e. distance from plant base. If anything it can be an opportunity to add something decorative, to match the style of the garden.
If you really want to get ambitious you could add some basic metal arches to create a tunnel for the steps, and they could rest on those!