Growing hydrangeas on the balcony »This is how it works

The right location

Hydrangeas do not count among the sun worshipers and prefer shady locations. An east, west or even north balcony is ideal. On a south-facing balcony, you should give the hydrangea a shady spot or shade the plant during the hot midday hours.

The hydrangea is very thirsty

The plant name "Hydrangea", which comes from the Greek, means "water-drawing" and stands for the great thirst of the hydrangea. It feels extremely comfortable in permanently moist soil, but at the same time reacts sensitively to over-watering. You can prevent this when you are planting:

• Only place hydrangeas in vessels with drainage holes.
• Cover these with potsherds.
• A drainage layer in the planter Expanded clay(€ 16.36 at Amazon *) to fill.
• Place the hydrangea in special hydrangea or alternatively rhododendron soil.

Water moderately but regularly

The hydrangea is also very sensitive to drought. On hot summer days, it is advisable to take the flowering plant in the morning and in the evening

to pour, because the substrate can only store a limited amount of water in the bucket. Pour away excess liquid in the saucer after a quarter of an hour so that the roots do not stand in the water permanently.

Don't forget to fertilize

So that Hydrangea in a pot if it sprouts new flower umbels throughout the summer, it needs regular fertilization. Use preferably hydrangea fertilizers, the nutrient composition of which is optimally matched to the requirements of the plant, or alternatively a rhododendrons or azaleas fertilizers.

Blue hydrangeas have special needs

If you care for a blue hydrangea, it is also necessary to add commercially available hydrangea blue to the irrigation water twice a year. You should also water these hydrangeas from time to time with vinegar water, which should have a pH value of around 4.0 to 4.5. This naturally acidifies the soil so that the plant can absorb the potash contained in this agent. You can measure the pH value of the water and the substrate yourself with test sticks that you can get from specialist gardeners.

Tips & Tricks

Even so, hydrangeas are relatively robust against diseases and Pests occasionally nest in the potted plants Spider mites or aphids. You should therefore regularly check the hydrangea for infestation. Detected early, the pests can be successfully combated with natural means.