Panicle Hydrangea 'Sundae Fraise'

Panicle hydrangea 'Sundae Fraise' (Hydrangea paniculata 'Rensun') is a strawberry sundae on branches. The dense conical panicles, 18 x 13 cm, open greenish white, blush pink and by late summer deepen to strawberry red, while the dark sturdy shoots hold them upright without bowing in the rain.

Flowering runs from July to September, so the shrub works for half the season. It reaches only 1.2-1.5 m in height and 0.9-1.2 m in width - the compact little sister of the big 'Vanille Fraise', made for a small garden, a container on the terrace or the front of a border. Prune in early spring.

Key characteristics:

• What makes it special: The name Sundae Fraise means strawberry sundae, a French play on words for the dessert-like look of the panicles.
• Dimensions: A mature bush holds 1.2-1.5 m in height and 0.9-1.2 m in width - compact and well-built.
• Hardiness: Overwinters without cover - it takes frosts down to -40 °C (USDA zone 3).
• Flowering: From July to September large panicles 18 x 13 cm open: first white, then pink and finally strawberry-red.
• Light: Full sun or partial shade; choose a sunny spot only where the soil stays reliably moist.
• Soil: Loves an organic-rich, evenly moist and well-drained soil of acid or neutral reaction.
• Watering: Regular, even watering: it is the flower heads that suffer if the root zone dries out.
• Care: Prune in late winter or early spring - it flowers on the current year's shoots.
• Landscape use: City and patio gardens, containers, cottage borders, low hedges - and the flower heads are excellent for cutting.
• Origin: A cultivar from the French breeder Jean Renault; its true cultivar name is 'Rensun', US patent PP25438 (2015).