Hydrangea serrata 'Mak20' COTTON CANDY mountain hydrangea, tea of heaven
size/type
medium-sized shrub,medium-sized shrub
usual height
0,6-0,8m
usual width
0,6-1,3m
leaves
deciduous broadleaf
colour of leaves
flowers
showy
colour of flowers
blooming time
June-September
location
full to partial sun
soil type
neutral to alkaline
soil moisture requirements
evenly moist but well-drained
USDA zone (lowest)
5b (down to -27°C)
winter protection
for zone 5+6
for zone 7
categorized
Mountain hydrangea is an elegant species that is believed to be just a subspecies of mop-head hydrangea (h. macrophylla) among some botanists. It comes from mountainous regions of Korea and Japan, and boasts better hardiness as well as tolerance to direct sunlight. Its inflorescence is usually tiered (flat) and leaves turn attractive shades of orange and red in autumn.
Description of the plant:
COTTON CANDY is a beautiful and hardy variety of mountain hydrangea from the Flairs & Flavours® series bred by Timothy D. Wood of the Spring Meadow Nursery in Michigan, USA, in 2009. It a slow-growing, compact shrub with large, bright green, deciduous leaves. It produces flat inflorescences composed of showy, deep pink, semi-double, sterile flowers on the outskirts, and tiny, fertile flowers with stunning indigo blue stamens in the center.It blooms profusely from early June and forms nice, dense, dome-shaped to mounding shrubs. Flowers lack fragrance. It blooms on previous year's wood, so if you need to prune it, do so before the end of July at the latest so that its branches mature by the end of the season to produce flower buds for the following year. Pink-coloured hydrangeas require high pH – alkaline soil.
The leaves are deciduous, broadly ovate, serrated at margins, and do not wilt in summer heat like those of mop-head hydrangeas. In autumn they take on rich crimson colour with a few orange tones. They contain phyllodulcin, a natural sweetener owing to which this plant is sometimes also called the 'tea of heaven', and they are used in Japan to make Amcha tea with which they celebrate the birth of the Buddha.
Hydrangeas love humus-rich, constantly moist but well-drained soil. Mulch the roots well to retain moisture. For pink shades make sure the soil is neutral or alkaline. Peat-based (acid) soil will make the flower turn violet-purple. You can use selective fertilizers to encourage flowering. Mountain hydrangea is much hardier than mop-head hydrangea and COTTON CANDY is suited to USDA zone 5b as it withstands frost down to at least -25 °C, perhaps even more (not tested yet).
Last update 03-07-2023
