How do I keep hydrangeas blue and pink?

Question

The blue flowers are turning green/white. The pink flowers are turning cream colored. This late in the season, should I cut off the older flowers and hope for new blooms, use fertilizer, or try something else?

Answer 1

Lime and epsom salts are used to alter the pH of the soil.  This site goes into great detail about what to do.

http://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/colo...

Answer 2

if you want to turn hydrangeas pink, you need to add lime to your soil. it isn't instant cure, it will turn colors over time. Pink blooms come from soil that has an alkaline soil. Blue blooms come from soil that is acidic. Adding sulfur can make your soil more acidic.

The petals as they get older like any flowers fade from all the sun and age. if you want to dry the hydrangea at it's peak and have it indoors you can do that. Cut the bloom at it's peak color. hang upside down in a dark room until dry.

You can cut off the old blooms, but won't get as many new blooms because most hydrangeas bloom on old wood, and cutting it cuts off that old wood.

Answer 3

Hydrangeas are fascinating in that, unlike most other plants, the color of their flowers can change dramatically.

It would be nice if one could change the color of hydrangeas as easily as it changes in this little picture. But it is NOT easy. The people who have the most controll over the color of their hydrangeas are those who grow them in containers. It is much easier to control or alter the pH of the soil in a container than it is in the ground.

On the other hand, hydrangeas often change color on their own when they are planted or transplanted. They are adjusting to the new environment. It is not unusual to see several different colors on one shrub the next year after planting.

It is much easier to change a hydrangea from pink to blue than it is from blue to pink. Changing a hydrangea from pink to blue entails adding aluminum to the soil. Changing from blue to pink means subtracting aluminum from the soil or taking it out of reach of the hydrangea.

That said, I'll give the best information that I have on this subject and let you take it from there.