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Hydrangea Hot Red Violet
Overview
The Hydrangea Hot Red Violet is a spectacular, relatively new introduction that revolutionises traditional hydrangea colour palettes with its vibrant, evolving blooms. This compact, bushy deciduous shrub produces large, long-lasting mophead flowers that begin the season as delicate pastel pink before transforming to striking cerise and deepening to rich violet-red as they mature. Perfect for adding bold, contemporary colour to gardens, this variety offers exceptional performance in both borders and containers.
Distinctive Features
Dynamic Colour Display: The flowers start the season pink and darken to cerise/violet as they mature, with blooms first emerging in delicate shades of pastel pink and maturing to a vivid violet red. This colour evolution provides months of changing interest throughout the flowering season.
Extended Flowering Period: Flowers are larger and longer lasting than more traditional hydrangea cultivars, flowering continuously from late spring until the end of summer.
Compact Growth Habit: A bushy, deciduous shrub, growing to about 1.2m height and spread, making it ideal for smaller gardens and container cultivation.
Robust Flower Heads: Large, dense mophead clusters create substantial visual impact, with individual flowers measuring approximately 4.5-5cm across.
Growing Conditions
Aspect: Thrives in sunny to semi-shaded positions. Partial shade with morning sun is ideal, as this protects the vibrant colours from fading in harsh afternoon light.
Soil Requirements: Performs best in neutral pH soil, with the distinctive dark pinky-red flowers produced when soil pH is neutral, though adaptable to slightly acidic to alkaline conditions (pH 4.5-7.5). Unlike many hydrangeas, this variety maintains its red tones across different pH levels.
Hardiness: Fully hardy in the UK (RHS H5), tolerating temperatures down to -10°C. Suitable for growing in hardiness zones 6-9.
Water Needs: Requires consistent moisture throughout the growing season, particularly during hot, dry periods. Well-draining soil that retains moisture is essential for optimal flower development.
Planting and Care
Planting: Plant in spring or early autumn when soil conditions are favourable. Space 1.2-1.5 metres apart for group plantings. Dig a planting hole twice the width of the root ball and incorporate plenty of well-rotted organic matter.
Feeding: Apply a balanced, slow-release fertiliser in early spring. A monthly liquid feed during the growing season will enhance flower size and colour intensity. Mulch annually with compost or well-rotted manure.
Pruning: Prune lightly in late winter or early spring, removing only dead, damaged, or weak growth. This variety flowers on old wood, so heavy pruning will reduce flowering. Deadhead spent blooms to encourage continued flowering and maintain plant appearance.
Mulching: Apply a 5-7cm layer of organic mulch around the base to retain moisture, suppress weeds, and provide slow-release nutrients. Keep mulch clear of the main stem to prevent collar rot.
Garden Uses
Container Gardening: This compact variety is ideally suited for containers, making it perfect for patios, terraces, and small garden spaces. Use large containers (minimum 50cm diameter) for best results.
Border Planting: Excellent for mixed shrub borders where its evolving flower colours provide season-long interest. The compact size makes it suitable for front or middle border positions.
Feature Planting: Use as a specimen plant where the dramatic colour transformation can be fully appreciated. Particularly effective near seating areas or along pathways.
Cut Flowers: The substantial flower heads make excellent cut flowers, lasting well in arrangements and providing unique colour combinations as they mature.
Contemporary Gardens: Perfect for modern garden designs where bold, evolving colours create focal points and seasonal drama.
Companion Plants
Pairs beautifully with plants that complement its rich colour palette. Consider planting with silver-leafed plants like artemisia or lamb's ear to highlight the vibrant blooms. Purple-flowered perennials such as salvias or catmint create harmonious colour schemes, whilst cream or white flowering plants provide stunning contrast.
Seasonal Interest
Spring: Fresh green foliage emerges, creating an attractive backdrop for the developing flower buds.
Summer: Large flowerheads, borne over a long period in summer, open pink, darkening to bright violet red, providing continuous colour evolution.
Autumn: Mature flowers deepen to rich burgundy tones, whilst foliage may develop attractive autumn tints before falling.
Winter: Strong branch structure provides garden framework, with dried flower heads offering winter interest if left unpruned.
Maintenance Tips
Colour Consistency: To maintain the characteristic red/violet tones, ensure soil pH remains close to neutral. Test annually and adjust with lime or sulphur as needed.
Watering: Install drip irrigation or soaker hoses for consistent moisture delivery, as drought stress can reduce flower size and colour intensity.
Winter Protection: In exposed locations, provide winter protection with horticultural fleece for young plants in their first two years.
Why Choose Hydrangea Hot Red Violet?
This striking plant provides essential summer colour, quite a contrast compared to usual hydrangea colours. The unique colour evolution from pink through cerise to deep violet-red offers exceptional garden value, whilst the compact growth habit makes it accessible for any garden size. Its extended flowering period, combined with superior flower longevity and bold contemporary colours, makes this variety an outstanding choice for gardeners seeking something truly distinctive. Whether grown in containers or borders, the Hot Red Violet delivers months of evolving beauty with reliable, easy-care performance.
Buying Shrubs from Jacksons Nurseries
At Jacksons Nurseries we sell a variety of shrubs both evergreen and deciduous with a variety of flowering times throughout the year. At certain times of the year our shrubs you buy from us may not look like the images shown on our website when deciduous leaves have fallen, the shrub has finished flowering or has been trimmed back.
Some leaves on evergreen shrubs can be damaged in winter by frost or harsh winds but in spring new leaves will readily replace those damaged. This is quite normal on many evergreen varieties and is preferable to plants grown with excessive protection that show cold shock once planted out and establish less satisfactory initially.
Availability: Stock availability figures are provided as a guide only. There is a delay between orders being placed and the plants being gathered by our pulling team. During this time it may be possible for a member of the public to purchase these plants from our Garden Centre, while this is rare it is a possibility and we will notify you of any problems as soon as possible. This figure may also include plants that have not yet be flagged as unsaleable.
Pre-order: Pre-order times are given as a guide only and may vary dependent on the growing season. Orders containing Pre-ordered products will be shipped as a single order when all items become available. Large orders may be part shipped, please contact us on 01782 502741 or email sales@jacksonsnurseries.co.uk.
* Please Note: Shrubs in 20 litre pots and above might require a pallet delivery starting at £79.99 per pallet. Depending on the exact pot size and height it may be possible to get approximately 5 plants per pallet at no extra cost. The maximum height we can dispatch on a pallet is 2.0m, this includes the height of the pallet and pot.
Shrubs are deciduous or evergreen woody plants, and often provide fragrant flowers, berries and foliage. They are good for structural framework, and they can provide a wonderful shelter and food source for wildlife.
Planting and Conditions
Container grown shrubs can be grown at any time of year. It is a little known fact that shrubs planted in the autumn and winter will be easier to look after than those planted in the spring and summer, because they will have time to establish and become hardy in the cooler months.
Plant the shrub at the same depth as it was in its original pot. Planting too deeply can result in root and stem rot.
One of the biggest causes of death in new shrubs is drought stress, so keep it well watered until it’s established.
Make sure you loosen the soil prior to planting. Most shrubs are tolerant of most soil types as long as it is fairly well draining.
Most shrubs will grow happily in containers, but they will be much more demanding on feeding and watering than shrubs in the ground would be. They will also need potting on every couple of years so that they don’t suffocate or become stunted in their pot.
Aftercare and Pruning
Once established, shrubs generally do not require much water. However, at first they need careful, frequent watering and should not be left to dry out.
Shrubs in the ground are generally not demanding and in most cases, annual feeding with general purpose fertilizer will suffice. Shrubs in containers may need more feeding; usually from early spring until late summer.
Shrubs also benefit from mulching in order to supress weeds, conserve moisture and provide vital nutrients. Mulch also greatly improves soil conditions. Shrubs can be mulched in late winter, after fertiliser has been applied, but it can be mulched through autumn to late spring as long as the ground is damp.
All shrubs benefit from dead-heading once spent flowers become apparent. Rhododendrons and Lilac especially benefit from the removal of dead flowers.
Some shrubs may show signs of reverted growth or ‘sporting’. This is where random shoots of different leaves associated with the plant’s parentage begin to appear. Most commonly this is where plants with variegated leaves sprout pure green growths instead of variegated ones.
To control reversion, remove reverted shoots promptly to discourage them. Reverted shoots are usually much more vigorous than the variegated ones, and thus should be completely pruned out and cut back into wood containing variegated foliage.
Potential Issues
Although shrubs are usually very robust garden plants, they can sometimes start to decline with no apparent or obvious reason.
This will start with browning leaves, which could indicate plant stress due to lack of water or waterlogging, an establishment failure or, in the worst case scenario, honey fungus. Another cause of leaf browning is a high salt content in the soil. This could be a natural occurrence, especially if you live near the ocean, or it could be from over fertilisation.
To remedy a high salt content, cut back on fertiliser and step up your watering regime for the next few weeks. If you live by the ocean, this will be harder to remedy—but stepping up your watering will help to wash some of the salt away all the same.
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