Dear Hydrangea enthusiasts,
 
Welcome to the September 2011 newsletter for Hydrangea Plus�.   I am so embarrassed.  I haven’t written a newsletter since May?  What was I thinking?  I have a lot of catching up to do for you.
 
What’s Happening…
Our thoughts and prayers are with those recovering from Irene.  If anyone has any questions that I may help with concerning their hydrangeas, please let me know.
 
Pulling out the mint julips, it will be 90 degrees (and plus) this week in the Willamette Valley.  Am I in the south, Texas, New England?  Hot wind and 90 degrees are going to be a challenge for us this week.  I know that most of you are saying, so what, we get that all the time.  We don’t typically get this hot in September.  Sure, June or July, maybe August but not September.  September is the most glorious time of the year for us.  Cool nights and warm days.  I better get out there and water.
 
Our summer didn’t start until August around here.  Cool temperatures make for happy hydrangeas.  We had great blooms when they finally did appear.  Better late than never.  I took lots of pictures and posted many on Facebook.  I was on a mission because  I spent the better part of July and August working on our new catalog for 2012.  It is due back from the printer any day now.  I have seven new varieties in the catalog.  See below for the listing of those new cultivars.  Two Paniculata, two Quercifolia and three Macrophylla are included this year. I hope you enjoy them.  Lots of new wood bloomers!  Order the catalog, http://hydrangeasplus.com/1/.  The PDF download will be available soon.
 
We are pruning hydrangeas, fertilizing and doing a little grow dance for some of those varieties that are still a little small.  I will be checking on the plants every week so if we’re out of stock, just check back.  Or email me with the size and cultivar and I can email you when they are back in stock.
 
New website
For the last week, I have been updating the website and I apologize if you have had trouble with orders.  In the past, we had separate products for each of our 1-year, 2-year and 3-year varieties.  Now, we have just one with three options for size.  New pictures on all varieties, too.
 
FaceBook
Welcome new Facebook subscribers.  We have almost 12860 fans. Yes, we are online and jumping into this new mode of information.  Join us for updates, information, interesting happenings and other hydrangea news.  Don’t forget to post your pictures!  Just search for Hydrangeas Plus or go to http://www.facebook.com/hydrangeasplus.   Specials are posted every month.  Come see what our next special will be.
 
Gardenpalooza: The Tour – September 15th – 18th, 2011
We’ve begun putting the hydrangeas in our retail houses and I’ll spend a lot of next week picking up supplies and setting up for this wonder event.  Fall is a wonderful time to plant hydrangeas.  In case you haven’t heard, this is a self-guided tour of garden centers and nurseries in Oregon and SW Washington.  Here is our schedule for the event http://hydrangeasplus.com/Gardenpalooza_-_The_Tour.html.
 
Hydrangeas will be 20 to 30% off retail catalog prices here at Hydrangeas Plus�.  Please come visit us and pickup a new hydrangea or two.
 
Fall orders and new shipping rates.
Fall is a great time to plant hydrangeas in most areas.  My rule of thumb for successful fall planting is that you must have enough time before frost for the roots to get established.  If the roots don’t get established, the hydrangea won’t live through the winter.  After the first frost, the plant stops growing significantly.  The roots will still grow but not as quickly.  I plant in the fall so that Mother Nature helps me with the watering.  I add mulch after leaf drop to make sure the roots stay warm and continue to grow and get established.  Email me if you have any questions.
 
New shipping rates start September 12th.  I got a great deal.  Updating this week.
 
Coming to Memphis for Mid-South Hydrangeas Society meeting
Put it on your calendar, I’ll be there October 10th for a 7pm presentation on hydrangeas. I’ll be at the Memphis Botanical Garden.
 
New Varieties
We have seven new varieties to offer.  Some will be ready for Fall 2011 but some may not be available until next spring.  I will put these on the website soon.
Macrophylla David Ramsey – new wood blooming mophead
Macrophyllla Sadie Ray – new wood blooming mophead
Macrophylla Weidler’s Blue – big, big white lacecap
Paniculata Chantilly Lace – open pollinated seedling from Georgia
Paniculata Little Lime™ - miniature Limelight
Quercifolia Ruby Slippers™ - small Oakleaf with blooms that turn red quickly
Quercifolia Munchkin™ - smallest Oakleaf I’ve grown
 
These new varieties have been tested here at Hydrangeas Plus� so we can honestly say these will work for you and they will do what we say they will.  I do a lot of new variety testing and not all of them past my stringent test and get the Hydrangeas Plus� stamp of approval.
 
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Sincerely,
Kristin VanHoose
Hydrangeas Plus�
http://www.hydrangeasplus.com