Hydrangeas are among the best bloomers you can grow, with magnificent displays of flowers over long periods. There are several types, and for cold climates or more sunny beds, the best are the type called panicle hydrangeas. The most well-known is the old PG hydrangea, a garden standard for well over 100 years in the northeast. Look for pointed flower heads, rather than round ones, to recognize the panicle hydrangeas, and today they come in many sizes, and in many colors too, from pale lime-green to dark burgundy reds.

We have seen a lot of them at the Tree Center, but we were blown away when we first saw the Candelabra® Hydrangea. It is definitely ‘not too big and not too small’ at around 5 feet tall, and perfect for specimens in smaller gardens or the back of smaller flower beds. The huge conical flower heads open a beautiful white, and then turn rich red over the summer and into fall, making a great display. For us it’s the pick of the creator’s Lavalamp® series, and you know, the flower heads with their shifting tones of red do remind us of the classic lava lamp of the 60s, which is of course back in fashion again. So give your garden the lava lamp treatment, and plant out glowing cones of white and red as wonderful features that last for months and months – and chill out on hard garden work.

Growing the Candelabra® Hydrangea

Size and Appearance

The Candelabra® Hydrangea is a rounded deciduous bush with strong upright stems forming a rounded, bushy plant. New stems are dark red when young, turning dark brown as they mature. The mid-green leaves are oval, and about 4 inches long, with a pointed tip and saw-tooth edges. The leaves turn clear yellow in fall. Flowers appear as dense buds at the tip of each stem and in warm zones the first flowers will open by mid-summer. Late summer blooming is usual in cooler zones, and the flower heads are very long-lasting, continuing to look attractive right into late fall. Every stem ends in a very large cone of blooms about 7 inches long, packed with hundreds of individual flowers. When the blooms first open they are creamy white, and that persists into fall, when the cooler nights make them gradually turn red from the base of the cone upwards – a wonderful glowing red color that will turn heads. Unlike older panicle hydrangeas, this one holds the blooms boldly upright, without flopping, forming an upright and very attractive bush.

Using the Candelabra® Hydrangea in Your Garden

This great shrub deserves a place in any garden bed, around your home, along a path or driveway, and anywhere you want maximum color and interest for month after month. Grow one out on the lawn in a small garden, or in front of evergreens – anywhere and everywhere it looks terrific. Mix it with spring-flowering shrubs to give continuity of interest in your beds, or plant a row along a fence for a great display.

Hardiness

Unlike mophead hydrangeas, the Candelabra Hydrangea is super-hardy, thriving in zones 3 and 4 and guaranteed to bloom profusely. It also grows well in warmer zones.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

Panicle hydrangeas like the Candelabra Hydrangea enjoy more sun than other hydrangeas, and this one is happy in full sun or with a couple of hours of shade each day. At least 6 hours a day of direct sun are needed for good blooming and strong stems. It grows vigorously in all well-drained garden soils, and neither the plant itself or the bloom colors are affected by the acid/alkaline balance of your soil.

Maintenance and Pruning

Water your new plant weekly for the first season, after that it has some drought resistance, but regular watering is appreciated. Some fertilizer for flowering shrubs in spring is valuable but not essential. Remove the flower heads when they brown in late fall, as snow and winter storms can pull them down, snapping the stems. Prune in spring by removing any weak or broken stems, leaving an open framework of branches. How hard you trim the branches influences flower-head size and abundance. Cutting back last year’s stems to just a couple of pairs of buds means the biggest flowers, but less of them, on a smaller bush. Cutting just a few inches off will give an abundance of smaller flower heads. Cutting back about half-way gives a good balance between size and quantity, and a medium-sized bush. After a few years you can remove a few of the oldest stems each year to regenerate your plant.

History and Origin of the Candelabra® Hydrangea

The panicle hydrangea, Hydrangea paniculata, is the most cold-resistant of all the hydrangeas, and it originated in China and Japan. Wild plants can be 15 feet tall, but garden forms are usually much smaller. The unique plant that Jan Oprins of Rijkevorsel, Belgium called ‘Hpopr013’ began as a chance seedling he spotted in 2010. It was growing near two older varieties of panicle hydrangea called Dharuma` and `Pink Diamond`, and since it shared some of their characteristics we can presume these were the parents of this random seedling. After testing its garden value Jan patented it in 2016. His new variety is distributed in North America with the registered trademark name of Candelabra®, by the Van Belle Nursery & the Curoplant Company, of British Columbia, Canada, under their brand name of Bloomin’ Easy®. It is part of their Lavalamp® series of panicle hydrangeas.

Buying the Candelabra® Hydrangea at the Tree Center

It is wonderful that we have new forms of the classic panicle hydrangea available that are just as easy to grow, but with exciting colors and compact forms. We know this one will be a winner, so order now, while our stock lasts.