The flower petals on my hydrangea are changing color from blue to green (see pic). Is this a cause for concern? The plant seems otherwise healthy.
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Hydrangea Petal Colors Changing?
- Thread starter Left Coast
- Start date
I'm planning to re-pot it so hopefully that will bring back it's beautiful blue/lavender color!
Google out the best way to get that color.
Including your water.
Where I live, ground water is quite alkaline, due to a limestone substrate. Pine forests over an igneous substrate are very different.
Tom
exchemist
Veteran Member
I think that's just what happens when the flowers get old and tired. One of mine goes through a change like that and then as autumn comes, it goes reddish before finally fading brown.
I wondered if it might just be a natural change they all go through. This is my first hydrangea so I wasn't sure. Sounds like the consensus is a soil change may do the trick.
exchemist
Veteran Member
Soil pH certainly affects the colour of the blooms when they flower, but I gather the important effect of the pH change is to alter the uptake of aluminium. People add alum for blue, slate for purple and something alkaline (chalk? lime?) for pink).
There's a detailed article on the chemistry of hydrangea colours here: https://www.americanscientist.org/article/curious-chemistry-guides-hydrangea-colors. I've only just found this and have not done more than skim it so far, but one interesting point is that the blooms are not true flowers but inflorescences - modified leaves. I think this may be why they can go green.
I'm not convinced that once they've gone green they can get their colour back. I suspect once that change has occurred the bloom is over. But may be worth keeping in case of interesting and decorative further colour changes as the season progresses. After all, if they are green they are not dead.
I had to giggle at that.
Tom
exchemist
Veteran Member
Here's another article, which seems to support my suspicion that green is a result of the blooms ageing: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/shrubs/hydrangea/green-hydrangea-blooms.htm
But you could always try a bit of alum in the soil to see if they go blue again. Don't overdo it though or you might kill the plant.
But you could always try a bit of alum in the soil to see if they go blue again. Don't overdo it though or you might kill the plant.
exchemist
Veteran Member
The pigment involved in hydrangeas is a derivative of the one at upper right, delphinidin. You can see they are all named after flowering plants.
