French hydrangea
Hydrangea macrophylla · Hydrangeaceae
French hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla) is catalogued by the USDA PLANTS database. USDA records it as hardy in zone 5 and warmer, down to about -13°F.
At a glance
| Mature height | 4 ft USDA |
|---|---|
| Light | shade USDA |
| Water need | low USDA |
| Growth rate | rapid USDA |
| Soil pH | 4.5–8 USDA |
| Flower color | Blue USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 5 and warmer USDA |
| Nursery availability | Routinely Available USDA |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
It tolerates full shade. USDA rates it as having low water needs once established. It is recorded on soils from pH 4.5 to 8 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 5; USDA publishes no warm-end limit, so gardeners in warmer zones should check local heat tolerance separately.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 4 ft, making it a low to knee-height plant. It grows quickly, which matters when you are timing a planting around the layers above it.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Hydrangea
- oakleaf hydrangea Hydrangea quercifolia
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol HYMA7, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
commercial_availability— quoted from USDA PLANTSflower_color— quoted from USDA PLANTSgrowth_rate— quoted from USDA PLANTSmature_height_ft— quoted from USDA PLANTSmoisture— quoted from USDA PLANTSnitrogen_fixer— quoted from USDA PLANTSpet_safe— quoted from USDA PLANTSph_max— quoted from USDA PLANTSph_min— quoted from USDA PLANTSshade_tolerance— quoted from USDA PLANTStemperature_min_f— quoted from USDA PLANTSzone_min— quoted from USDA PLANTS
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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