Get It Growing: How can I get pink hydrangeas?

To grow hydrangeas with pink flowers, you must first select the right kind of hydrangea. Only bigleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla) and mountain hydrangeas (H. serrata) produce the quintessential pink (and blue) flowers for which hydrangeas are known.

Flowers from other types of hydrangeas (smooth [H. arborescens], oakleaf [H. quercifolia], and panicle hydrangea [H. paniculata]) are typically white, greenish-white, or cream-colored. They can develop a pink or reddish tinge as the blooms age or temperatures cool, but they will not produce those big, beautiful pink blooms you may be referring to.

Next, you must plant your hydrangeas in alkaline soil. The color of hydrangeas ultimately depends on the availability of aluminum ions to the plant. In acidic soil, the aluminum ions are mobile; the plants absorb the ions and the flowers will be blue. In alkaline soil, aluminum ions are tightly bound and cannot be absorbed by the plant, so the flowers remain pink.

For pink hydrangeas, you need a soil pH above 7. A reading between 6.0 and 7.0 usually results in purple to pink blooms and readings lower than 6.0 yield purple to blue hydrangea flowers.

If your soil pH is below 7, increase the pH using garden lime. The amount of lime needed will depend on your soil texture and the starting pH.

Changes in soil pH are slow. Allow anywhere from 3-18 months for the color change to be complete.

For gardens with very acidic soil, it can be challenging to raise the pH enough to get pink hydrangeas. An easier option is to grow your hydrangea in a container in good-quality potting soil. Potting soil rarely has aluminum in it so the flowers can’t turn blue.

Finally, be aware that bigleaf and mountain hydrangeas bloom on year-old wood. To avoid cutting off flower buds, prune them immediately after the plants bloom in the summer and keep pruning to a minimum.

Last year, my strawberry patch produced only small berries. They have done well since I planted them five years ago. Do I need to fertilize them more?

Fertilizer is probably not your problem. As strawberry plants age, they develop multiple crowns and runners, i.e., horizontal stems with daughter plants that shade each other and compete for nutrients. Diseases, especially viral diseases, and pests accumulate in the plants. Shading, competition for nutrients, diseases, and pests take their toll. Ultimately the production of strawberries, both the number and size, declines. After the planting year, June-bearing strawberries produce well for about three to five years.

Everbearing and day-neutral strawberries remain productive for two to three years. June-bearing strawberries remain productive longer than other strawberries because they produce more runner plants and bear fruit for only a limited time during growing season.

As your strawberry patch ages or if you notice a decline in productivity that cannot be explained by other correctable problems, it’s time to start a new strawberry patch.

Because diseases and pests can build up in the soil over time, it is best to start the new planting in a new site. Use disease-free plants purchased from a reputable source. Do not use daughter plants from the old planting. They could introduce pest-infested soil and virus-infected plants into your new planting site.

Look for a site that gets at least six hours of sun a day with well-drained soil high in organic matter. Select a site with sufficient elevation and air drainage to prevent frost damage in early spring when plants bloom and minimize fungal and other diseases.

Please submit your gardening questions to mgplantclinic.clallam@gmail.com. Happy gardening!

Jeanette Stehr-Green is WSU-certified Clallam County Master Gardener.

Second Saturday Garden Walks

Held on the second Saturday of each month from 10-11:30 a.m., April through September,Second Saturday Garden Walks are at the 5th Street Community Garden, 328 E. 5th St., Port Angeles. Each tour includes topics related to vegetable gardening, herbs and other food crops that are tailored to what is happening in Clallam County gardens each month.

Master Gardeners are also at 5th Street Community Garden Mondays from 10 a.m.-noon and often will be available for a variety of questions. Now that plant clinics have resumed at the courthouse, those with landscape needs might wish to attend the 5th Street Community Garden for consultation.

Master Gardener Plant Clinics

The Port Angeles Plant Clinic, located in the lobby of the historic Clallam County Courthouse in front of the WSU Clallam County Extension Office, runs from March through October of each year on Mondays. The Saturday Sequim plant clinic, located at the Woodcock Demonstration Garden, 2711 Woodcock Road in Sequim, is open during our Digging Deeper Workshops and the annual Master Gardener Plant Sale. All clinics will be open for full hours starting again in 2022. Please call 360-565-2679 to confirm. Online questions can be submitted at extension.wsu.edu/clallam/mg/plant-clinics.