The 2012 Tin Roof Gardens Hydrangea Edition...

This is the second season of Penny Mac Hydrangeas named after Penny McHenry, founder of the American Hydrangea Society. They have a few unusual traits. They bloom on old and new wood, are a repeat bloomer in the same season and have both large and small mophead blooms on the same plant. They definitely benefit from afternoon shade and require regular soaking when they get too hot. Yes, a little needy but just look at the display. To get pink, the plant must not take up aluminum from the soil. If the soil naturally contains aluminum, add dolomitic lime powder to the soil a few times a year. For blue hydrangea, aluminum must be present in the soil. This bed's PH is obviously a mess but we like the variation.

You cant beat the vivid color of Cityline Venice Hydrangea.

A beautiful cascade of pink Nikko Blue.

This Merritt's Supreme is nice but gets a little too much sun. The flowers have been on the small side but it always blooms. A key characteristic of this variety is very sturdy stems. No flopping on this one. We'll move it to a shadier location next spring.

This is an unknown variety that has a enormous flower. We bought a tray of Sister Theresa and this one was mixed in. Beautiful color with large petals. The picture doesn't do it justice.

The classic Nikko Blue in all it blue glory.

Originally named Petite Soeur Therese De L'enfant Jesus and bred in 1947, Sister Theresa needs partial shade. We bought these to use as an under-story plant for Oakleaf Alice. We saw these in Berlin and thought the compact white flowers on dark green foliage was a striking combination.

The classic southern Annabelle Hydrangea. To help with the inevitable flopping, I tied it up in the spring. It seemed to help.

We bought this scratch and dent Lady in Red Lacecap Hydrangea at an Amish garden center two years ago and it really came alive this season. The blooms are quite delicate so try to keep it out of afternoon sun.

I thought this was an interesting image of Heuchera Citronelle with a Lady in Red flower poking through.

This is a full image of Lady in Red in bloom. Look close and you can see the red stems. This image also has a pink Nikko Blue (back) and Variegated Maculata Lacecap (on the right).

Maculata Lacecap is a unique lacecap with variegated foliage. It can be blue or pink. I think it looks better when blue.

An unknown lacecap variety. A beautiful bloom. Wish I knew its name.

Another unknown lacecap ...

and yet another unknown lacecap....

and the final unknown lacecap. Someday I might find someone who can help identify these plants.

Our Oakleaf Alice produced huge flowers this year. After three years in the ground they are really starting to fill out. This is a large species so make sure you have plenty of room. The leaves are much larger than any Oakleaf I've seen. 

A classic American native Quercifolia Oakleaf. This one was mislabeled at the garden center. We thought it was an Oakleaf Alice but now we love it. We also discovered that they are mildly fragrant. They don't market them as fragrant but I will attest to the fact the our plant produced enough perfume that we could smell them from the patio chairs 4 to 5 feet away.

A closeup of the Oakleaf flower spike. They are quite fuzzy behind the white petals.

This is a dwarf Oakleaf PeeWee. The flowers are not as long as the standard but its a nice accent Oakleaf if you don't have room for the larger variety.

This was labeled as a Pinky Winky but its obviously not true. It is definitely a paniculata but maybe its a "PeeWee", "White Moth" or "Unique."

Here is a closeup of the plant above. It has a Japanese Zen quality to it.

Sometimes the immature flowers have a beauty all their own. This is a young Merritt's Supreme.

This is a young pink Nikko Blue.

This s a young blue Nikko Blue.

A young Oakleaf bloom before it starts to curve.

This is a climbing Hydrangea Anomala subspecia Petiolaris. It's really growing well this year. They say it takes a few years to get acclimated but when happy it takes off.