Grow Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangea Shrubs: Try Vanille Fraise Hydrangeas For Sweet Blooms Every Summer

If you aren’t sure what color hydrangea you like best, a Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea (aka Vanille Fraise hydrangea) offers a gorgeous fusion of pinks and whites. This hydrangea offers cone-shaped flowers that open in July, with striking blossoms that change colors as they mature.

The flowers of this dazzling panicle hydrangea variety emerge white, mature to pink and then deepen to a rusty blush. As well as bringing a splash of variety to beds and borders, the Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea is a lovely compact hydrangea cultivar that does especially well in cooler hardiness zones. Here’s how you can cultivate the healthiest and fluffiest Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea plant possible for your garden.

Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangea Care

A Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea bush (H. paniculata ‘Renhy’) can whip up a fruity storm in borders, either as a specimen shrub or as part of an informal hedge. These pink and white hydrangea bushes are reassuringly easy to care for, and they are very hardy. There are just a few cultivation essentials to keep in mind to grow the best flowering bushes in your garden, whether you’re creating a cottage style, a privacy shrub or a unique focal feature in a white garden.

Understanding this panicle hydrangea’s care is just a case of choosing a location that supports ample light, warmth and soil requirements, keeping on top of regular watering and nourishment, and making sure you prune and pest-check at the right times. Here’s how to best care for your Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea shrub.

• Light: Full sun is best for the Vanilla Strawberry panicle hydrangea. These sun tolerant hydrangeas enjoy six to eight hours of direct sun each day. Plants will also do well with partial sun. In fact, in areas with very hot sun in summer, it’s best to position them where they will get a little afternoon shade.
• Water: The Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea needs regular water, usually about an inch (2.5cm) a week. However, you may need to water hydrangeas more in times of drought or particularly hot weather. However, make sure the soil is not left waterlogged, though.

• Temperature & Humidity: This hydrangea is very cold hardy, thriving in USDA zones 3-8. It might require winter protection in zone 3, but generally it can tolerate temperatures down to -20°F (-28C). A Vanilla Strawberry cultivar doesn’t require much humidity – in fact, excess humidity can lead to fungal diseases.
• Soil: A Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea bush will tolerate almost any kind of soil as long as it drains well. Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea shrubs grow best in soil with a neutral or slightly acidic pH. However, they don’t change color in accordance with soil pH like certain hydrangeas can (color changes occur irrespective of pH).
• Fertilizer: If your garden soil lacks nutrients, you may need to add fertilizer to give your shrubs a lift. You can fertilize hydrangeas by working organic compost into the soil every year. Failing that, add a slow-release fertilizer in springtime.

Problems, Pests & Diseases

Vanilla Strawberry is susceptible to a few hydrangea diseases, the most likely being fungal diseases. These can include problems like bacterial wilt, leaf spot and mildew. The best way to prevent these issues is by planting Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea plants with lots of elbow room. This lets air flow through the shrubs and helps shrubs to dry after watering.

A Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea paniculata can also attract garden insects like aphids and mites. You can control aphids and certain other pests by spraying the plant with an organic insecticide like a neem oil spray.

Pruning Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangeas

The timing for pruning hydrangeas can be tricky. Some hydrangea species flower on the last season’s growth, while others flower on new growth. These two groups must be pruned at different times. Those that flower on old growth must be pruned early, just after flowering. Those that flower on new growth can be pruned up until spring.

Vanilla strawberry hydrangea shrubs set buds on new growth. This means the buds appear on new stems in springtime. These shrubs can be pruned at any time before new growth starts. That means you can prune them from late fall to very early spring. If you get out the pruners for Vanilla Strawberry plants in late spring or summer, you’ll get fewer flowers as you’ll be chopping off flower buds.

You can cut back the bush every year, taking off up to one-third of the total growth. Regular pruning can help create a good branching structure and opens the center of the bush to prevent fungal diseases. Annual pruning will lead to larger blossoms.

If you are considering deadheading your hydrangeas, wait until their color shifts are completed. Don’t clip off those blossoms too early or you’ll miss their glorious color changes.

Repotting Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangeas

Many hydrangeas are large, full shrubs, making them difficult to grow in containers. Vanilla Strawberry is small enough to make a lovely potted tree hydrangea and will be happy in a patio pot. Pick a large container with good drainage holes and use regular potting soil. Plan to repot or root prune every few years.

Container plants require more water than those with roots in the garden soil. They will also need to be moved to a shelter for winter weather.

Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangea Propagation

Although you can propagate hydrangea plants by rooting cuttings if growing other varieties, it is illegal to try this with Vanilla Strawberry. This is because it is a trademarked cultivar. This hydrangea variety produces no fertile flowers, so sowing seeds is not an option. These perennials need to be acquired as potted plants from nurseries, garden centers and reliable online suppliers.

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