Bigleaf Hydrangea or French Hydrangea or Mophead
Hydrangea macrophylla 'Otaksa'
Hydrangea family (Hydrangeaceae)
A long time in cultivation
Hydrangea species are native to the temperate regions of Asia and America. The first shrub to appear in Europe arrived in 1736 from North America: it was Hydrangea arborescens, the tree hydrangea. In their 'wild’ form, only the flowers on the edge of the umbel attract insects. In Japan they have been cultivated for centuries. The genus Hydrangea means ‘water-loving’, which describes the demand that the hydrangea has for water very well.
Von Siebold sent this hydrangea to Europe subsequently from his nursery in Leiderdorp, at around 1859, these plants were distributed under the cultivar name Hydrangea macrophylla 'Otaksa’. It had been named after his Japanese love, Kusomoto Sonogi or Otaki. On acidic soils ‘Otaksa’ has a tendency to become somewhat bluish in colour but a true blue is only obtained through the use of aluminum phosphate.
Themes
Crown jewel in the Historic Garden of Aalsmeer and Overzee Botanic Garden.
In 1830, botanist Philipp Franz von Siebold introduced this Japanese variety to Europe. The name 'Hydrangea' was commissioned in 1771 by the French botanist Philibert Commerson. The name is probably derived from the Latin 'hortus' so 'hydrangea' means simply 'from the garden'.
The leaves of most hydrangeas contain a poisonous glucoside with the exception of Hydrangea serrata var. oamacha with its sweet tasting leaf from which tea can be made - it is therefore specifically grown for this puropse in private gardens and around Buddhist temples.
Details
| Description: | Shrub, up to 1.50 m. |
|---|---|
| Distributions: | Only found in cultivation. |
| Habitat: | Best grown in rich, relatively moist, well-drained soils in partial shade. tolerates full sun only if grown in permanently moist soils. |
| Year cycle: | Perennial (polycarpic decidous) |
| Hardiness: | -4 - 5 f (hardy - very cold winter) |
| Flowering period: | Juli - september |
| Flower color: | Pink, blue |
| Notes on flowers: | Flower colour depends on the ph of the soil - a rich blue in acidic soils becoming lilac to pink in neutral to alkaline soils. |
| At its best: | Augustus |
Sources
Visions of loveliness: Great Flower Breeders of the Past. - Judith M.Taylor,http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=249031&isprofi...,
http://hortensianederland.nl/boerenhortensia/otaksa,
http://www.tuinenmienruys.nl/nl/confectieborders/hydrangea-macrophylla-otaksa/,
http://hortensianederland.nl/boerenhortensia/otaksa,
Dendrologie van de lage landen - Jan de Koning en Wim van den Broek, Het grote hortensiaboek, McClintock, E. (1957). A monograph of the genus Hyd