These include "Alpengluhen" (Hydrangea macrophylla "Alpengluhen") and "Pia" (Hydrangea macrophylla "Pia"), among others. What gives color to our hydrangea plant, are the modified bracts that surround the true flower of the plant. I mixed the stuff with water and it was a messy task. However, now, all the beautiful round flowers have lost their color and look faded. Avoid getting it on the hydrangea's leaves, roots or stems. Change your soil pH. To make pink hydrangeas turn blue (or to keep your blue ones from turning pink), increase the acidity of soil. However, the white hydrangea color is not affected by the soil pH. You cannot change white hydrangeas to pink or blue. Do this again several months later. During holidays and special events, many types of flowers can be dyed colors that are not available naturally such as green carnations for St. Patrick's Day. It would be good if this article talked about how bad aluminum sulfate is for the environment! If you want to change the blooms to blue you must increase the acidity of the soil. Julie Christensen is a food writer, caterer, and mom-chef. Answered. There are other types of hydrangeas, such as oakleaf and PeeGees that have white or cream colored flowers which you can not change the flower color of. But the relationship between color and pH is more complex than just numbers on a scale. Google it. It was in a plastic pot so I just transferred it to a much larger pot. Spread dolomitic lime over the soil in fall at a rate of 1/4-to-1/2 pound per plant, for each scale interval change. Re-apply annually to keep the blooms pink. Hydrangeas change color (except for the white ones) based on the pH level of their soil. Some selections resist changing, and white hydrangeas tend to remain white. Thank you, To confirm your soil’s pH level, let’s test a sample: Don’t be disappointed if the color stays the same. Studies say you cannot change a white Hydrangea. To turn pink flowers blue, add 4 tablespoons of aluminum sulfate to a gallon of water, and drench around the base. If the soil naturally contains aluminum and is acid (low pH) the color of the hydrangea will automatically tend toward shades of blue and/or purple. Hydrangea flowers will naturally fade and dry in the fall, often to a combination of pink and green or tan. It was potting soil. Hydrangeas may change color, depending on the pH balance of the soil. These bracts can be bluish, pink or white and their color depends on the conditions of the substrate on which it is growing, in addition to its variety. It worked fine, changing from pink to blue. The Garden Primer; Barbara Damrosch; 2008. Again, you will have to add the lime every 3 to 4 weeks throughout the growing season to keep the blooms pink. However, you can also change the color of hydrangeas. I had this same issue last year and purchased what I was told was needed to bring the color back. There are many types of hydrangeas, but the ones you can change the flower color on are the types usually referred to as mopheads, lacecaps, bigleaf, or French hydrangeas. With many flowers, what you buy is what you get: Red roses are red roses; yellow gerbera daisies are yellow gerbera daisies. Use diluted aluminum sulfate to increase the acidity of the soil and turn pink flowers a lustrous, silvery blue. Avoid cultivating deeply, which can damage the hydrangea plant's roots. White oak leaf hydrangeas are not the same as the pink and blue French hydrangeas that really are horticultural oddities. Knowing all of the above, it’s fairly simple to increase acidity (for blue) or alkalinity (for pink): To Go Blue. Submitted by Nancy C. Hawkins on June 14, 2019 - 2:20pm. Look to the French or bigleaf hydrangea types. Fertilizer helps feed the plant the nutrients that it needs to keep it vibrant and happy. Endless Summer Color Me Pink and Color Me Blue products (available at garden centers and from naturehills.com) supply pelletized lime and sulfur respectively. Blue hydrangeas need a soil pH around 5.5. If you ever had an experiment in school where you’re tasked to change the color of a white rose, you’ll know that everything lies in the soil. It is easier to change blue flowers to pink than to change pink flowers to blue, and some  cultivars are more prone to color variability than others. Increase or decrease the amount depending on your soil conditions and instructions on the chart on clemson.edu based on your pH. The white flowers stay white (color can never be changed) and usually prefer the same conditions as the pinks and reds. It helps to understand which hydrangeas shift colors use hydrated lime or quick-lime to raise the pH of soil... Blue ones from turning pink ), increase the acidity of the plant National Arboretum aim! 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