Invincibelle® Wee White Hydrangea

Mop-head hydrangeas are well-known for their huge balls of blossoms in summer, and for their long flowering season. Gardeners in colder zones know well that these plants are difficult or impossible to bloom if winter cold kills the stems to the ground. Many gardeners do not realize there is another hydrangea, called the smooth hydrangea, that flowers on new stems that grow from the base in spring. The classic Annabelle hydrangea is of that type, and it’s an old standard in cold regions, although it flops and falls under the weight of its white blooms. That doesn’t happen with the Invincibelle® Wee White Hydrangea, whose compact form and sturdy stems keeps those big white blossoms standing proud. It too blooms happily even in zone 3, so why struggle to grow mopheads, when you can easily grow this beautiful plant instead?

Growing Invincibelle Wee White® Hydrangea Shrubs

The Invincibelle Wee White® Hydrangea grows into a dense, rounded bush just 2 to 2½ feet tall, and as much across. Its many stems grow from older wood and from the base, and each one is topped with an enormous head of pure white blooms. The large leaves are pointed ovals with a serrated edge and sturdy texture. 3½ to 4½ inches long and wide. Their rich green color and size makes this plant attractive even when it is not blooming, but we don’t have to wait long for blooms, because very quickly a cluster of green flower buds appears at the tip of every stem. This expands into a large flower head, a full 7 inches across and dome-shaped. Each head has hundreds of blooms in it, tightly packed together to make an enormous bouquet. In bud and when opening the flowers are flushed with pink, but they open to a clean, brilliant pure white that sparkles across your garden. In warmer zones the first flowers appear by late May, and last through June, looking gorgeous for a full month of delightful blooming. In cooler zones, you will wait longer, but blooms will come by August, and last into the early fall. In warmer zones, you will get those later blooms too, so this great bush will be in bloom almost continuously from June to September.

With its compact size, the Invincibelle Wee White® Hydrangea is perfect for the front of garden beds, or for planting along the edge of a path or driveway. Grow it around your home, or out in your garden – it will bring its neat, bright look to every type of garden design. It is a real winner for planter boxes, where it blooms for so long you won’t even need to plant flowers with it. Grow it in a pot where you can bring it onto the terrace and have it right by you to enjoy it. Anywhere in your garden is the right place for such a great plant. Snip off the flower heads as they fade, and soon more will replace them.

Unlike mop-head hydrangeas, the best location for the Invincibelle Wee White Hydrangea is in a spot with at least 6 hours of direct sunlight. This keeps it sturdy and able to hold up those big flower heads. The morning sun is preferable in warmer zones, with some afternoon shade, and all-day sun is just fine, especially in cooler areas. Too much shade will make it floppy and weak, which you don’t want. The soil should be moist, well-drained, and enriched with plenty of organic material, such as compost or manure. Mulch in spring is a great way to keep the ground moist and cool, which hydrangeas love. Keep the mulch away from the base of the plant but cover the root-zone. Regular watering and liquid fertilizer will make for strong, sturdy plants, smothered in many heads of bloom for months at a time, and this plant is not resistant to drought, so keep it well-watered at all times. In warmer zones, spring is the time to trim your bush. It’s easy, just cut back the stems by about one-third, to a point just above a sturdy pair of buds. It is best to wait until you see the buds swell before pruning. Remove any dead stems completely at the base. In zones 3 and 4 the stems will have died to the ground – don’t worry, it will sprout and bloom again. Remove the dead stems, clean up around the plant, and you are all set for another season.

History and Origins of Invincibelle Wee White Hydrangea Shrubs

The Invincibelle Wee White® Hydrangea is the product of a detailed breeding program carried out by Thomas Green Ranney at North Carolina State University. He chose the smooth hydrangea, Hydrangea arborescens, to work with because if its ability to bloom on new stems. This American shrub grows in woods and beside streams, throughout the east, from New York to Florida, and west into Iowa, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. The wild plant has tiny, greenish flowers, but forms with large flowers exist in gardens, and they were the starting point for breeding, looking for a compact and sturdy bush, instead of the big, floppy plant this hydrangea usually is. From the hundreds of seedlings he grew, one he called `NCHA5` was selected, and intensively tested. In early 2019 he was granted a US Plant Patent, and this brand-new variety is already winning rave reviews. Given the fitting name Wee White, Spring Meadow Nursery, Grand Haven, Michigan, have released this plant under their hydrangea trade-mark Invincibelle®, one of their Proven Winners® range of great garden shrubs – and an invincible winner it is. With its ability to bloom in colder zones, this plant is going to be sold out soon, so order now, because hydrangea season is just around the corner.