Hydrangea (/ha?'dre?nd?i?/;common brands hydrangea or hortensia) is a genus of 70-75 types of flowering plants native to southern and eastern Asia (China, Japan, Korea, the Himalayas, and Indonesia) and the Americas. Undoubtedly the greatest kinds diversity is at eastern Asia, china notably, Japan, and Korea. Most are shrubs 1 to 3 meters high, but some are small trees, as well as others lianas getting up to 30 m (98 feet) by climbing up trees. They could be either deciduous or evergreen, though the extensively cultivated temperate varieties are all deciduous.Having been introduced to the Azores, H. macrophylla is very common now, particularly on Faial, which is recognized as the "blue island" due to the multitude of hydrangeas present on the island.Life cycleHydrangea blooms are produced from early spring to late autumn; they expand in flowerheads (corymbs or panicles) most often at the ends of the stems.
Usually the flowerheads contain two types of flowers: small non-showy plants in the guts or interior of the flowerhead, and large, showy blooms with large bright colored sepals (tepals). These showy bouquets are often expanded in a ring, or to the surface of the tiny flowers. Plant life in crazy populations have few to nothing of the showy blossoms typically, while cultivated hydrangeas have been bred and selected to have significantly more of the larger type blooms.There are two flower arrangements in hydrangeas with Corymb style inflorescens, which include the commonly grown "bigleaf hydrangea"--Hydrangea macrophylla. Mophead plants are large round flowerheads resembling pom-poms or, as the name implies, the relative brain of any mop. In contrast, lacecap flowers bear round, flat flowerheads with a center core of subdued, small flowers surrounded by outer rings of larger flowers having showy sepals or tepals.
The blossoms of some rhododendrons and viburnums can seem, initially, comparable to those of some hydrangeas.Colors and dirt acidityIn most kinds the blooms are white, but in some varieties (notably H. macrophylla), can be blue, red, red, light purple, or dark crimson. In these kinds the color is influenced by the presence of light weight aluminum ions which are available or tangled up depending upon the dirt pH. For H. macrophylla and H. serrata cultivars, the flower color can be determined by the relative acidity of the soil: an acidic soil (pH below 7), will supply aluminum ions and produce flowers that are blue to purple typically, whereas an alkaline soil (pH above 7) will tie up aluminum ions and bring about pink or red flowers.
This is the effect of a color change of the rose pigments in the presence of aluminium ions which is often taken up into hyperaccumulating vegetation.[6] Decreasing the pH of potting soils or mixes usually does not change the flower color to blue, because these soils have no aluminum ions. The ability to blue or pink a hydrangea is also influenced by the cultivar. Some plants are selected for his or her ability to be blued, while some are bred and selected to be red, pink or white. The flower color of most other Hydrangea species is not afflicted by aluminum and cannot be changed or shifted. Hydrangeas also have a nickname called 'Change Rose'.
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