Bigleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla) - blue flowers, illustrated plant card

Illustration

Bigleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla) - real photo — Photo by zebedeugalinha / iNaturalist (CC BY)

Photo credits and licenses

Real photographs from naturalists and photographers worldwide, each used under its own license. Credit: Photo by zebedeugalinha / iNaturalist (CC BY). How photos are sourced →

Bigleaf Hydrangea

Hydrangea macrophylla

Also called french hydrangea, hortensia, mophead hydrangea, lacecap hydrangea and big leaf hydrangea

Bigleaf Hydrangea blooms from June through August.

Design a garden with this →Shop hydrangeas at Plant Addicts(paid link)

Bloom calendar

Bloom time

Jun–Aug

checked

Hardiness

Zones 5–9

checked

Sun

Part sun

checked

Water

High water

checked

Mature size

5 ft × 5 ft

checked

Type

Shrub

house classification

Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.

Plant it in part sun. It prefers high water. It is hardy in USDA zones 5–9. Expect it to reach about 5 ft tall and 5 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 4 years (a house reading).

Is Bigleaf Hydrangea toxic to dogs or cats?

Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by NC State Extension, Pet Poison Helpline and Royal Horticultural Society.
Listed as poisonous to people by NC State Extension.

Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.

Verification

Planting record checked

What was checked

Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.

See the 12 sources it was checked against

When to plant Bigleaf Hydrangea

Plant Bigleaf Hydrangea in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 7, the middle of its hardy zones 5 to 9, spring means March to May and fall means September or October. Once settled, it blooms from June to August.

Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 7, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 7 in March. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.

How big does Bigleaf Hydrangea get?

Illustration of Bigleaf Hydrangea drawn to scale beside an adult — About 5 ft tall and 5 ft wide at maturity: about as tall as an adult.

See Bigleaf Hydrangea in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.

How far apart to plant Bigleaf Hydrangea

Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.

Space Bigleaf Hydrangea about 5 ft apart, center to center, so each plant has room to reach its full width.

Plant them

5 ft apart

Per 10 sq ft

one needs about 25 sq ft

4 by 8 ft bed

about 1

Add Bigleaf Hydrangea to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.

Where these facts come from

Bigleaf Hydrangea's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags were checked against 12 published sources on October 29, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.

Missouri Botanical Gardenheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
umass.eduUMass Extension Landscape, Nursery and Urban Forestry Program (Growing...height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, bloom months and color and trait tags
NC State ExtensionHydrangea macrophyllaheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and trait tags
The Morton ArboretumBig-leaved hydrangea, Hydrangea macrophyllaheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and trait tags
Missouri Botanical GardenHydrangea macrophyllaheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and trait tags
Oregon State UniversityHydrangea macrophyllaheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and water
plantdatabase.uconn.eduUniversity of Connecticut Plant Databaseheight, spread, bloom months and color and trait tags
University of Illinois ExtensionBigleaf Hydrangea, Hydrangea macrophyllaheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and water
sunshinegrowersnursery.comSunshine Grower Nurseryheight, spread, hardiness zones and sun
Clemson Home and Garden Information CenterHydrangea Care in South Carolinaheight and sun
RHSRoyal Horticultural Societywater
University of Georgia ExtensionGrowing Bigleaf Hydrangeasun

How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.

24 more colors in the Hydrangeas group

Same genus, similar care - pick the one you are growing.

Across the group, bloom runs from May through September: Fairytrail Bride Hydrangea opens first (May) and Berry White Hydrangea is the last to finish (September).

Compare every variety in the Hydrangeas group

Every figure is the variety's own page fact. Tap a name to open it.

Variety	Color	Blooms	Hardiness	Sun	Size (H × W)
Alice Oakleaf	White	Jun–Jul	Zones 5–9	Part sun	6.5 ft × 6.5 ft
Berry White	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	6.5 ft × 4.5 ft
Bigleafthis page	Blue	Jun–Aug	Zones 5–9	Part sun	5 ft × 5 ft
BloomStruck	Pink	Jun–Sep	Zones 5–9	Part shade	3.5 ft × 4 ft
Bobo	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	2.5 ft × 3.5 ft
Endless Summer Summer Crush	Red	Jul–Sep	Zones 4–9	Part shade	2.5 ft × 2.5 ft
Fairytrail Bride	White	May–Jul	Zones 7–9	Part shade	4 ft × 4 ft
Fire Light	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	6 ft × 6 ft
Incrediball	White	Jun–Aug	Zones 3–9	Full sun	4.5 ft × 4.5 ft
Invincibelle Spirit II	Pink	Jun–Sep	Zones 3–8	Part sun	3.5 ft × 3.5 ft
Let's Dance Rhythmic Blue	Blue	Jun–Sep	Zones 5–9	Part shade	2.5 ft × 2.5 ft
Limelight	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	7 ft × 7 ft
Little Lime	-	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	4 ft × 4 ft
Magical Candle	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 5–8	Full sun	4.5 ft × 3.5 ft
Oakleaf	White	May–Jul	Zones 5–9	Part sun	6 ft × 6 ft
Panicle	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	6.5 ft × 6 ft
PeeGee	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	11 ft × 10 ft
Phantom	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	6.5 ft × 7.5 ft
Pinky Winky	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–9	Full sun	7 ft × 6 ft
Quick Fire	White	Jun–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	6 ft × 5.5 ft
Smooth	White	Jun–Sep	Zones 3–9	Part shade	4 ft × 4 ft
Snowcicle	White	May–Jul	Zones 5–9	Part sun	5.5 ft × 5 ft
Strawberry Sundae	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 3–8	Full sun	4.5 ft × 3.5 ft
Tuff Stuff	Pink	Jun–Sep	Zones 5–9	Part shade	2.5 ft × 2.5 ft
Vanilla Strawberry	White	Jul–Sep	Zones 4–8	Full sun	7 ft × 4.5 ft

Good to know about Bigleaf Hydrangea

Curated from university extensions, botanic gardens and other primary sources, with the source named on every note. A note reports what its source says; where that differs from a fact above, the fact above is this entry's stored value, and its mark says whether it has been checked.

Safety

Toxic to dogs, cats and horses; the leaves and buds hold a cyanogenic glycoside. Eating it mostly causes vomiting and diarrhea. per ASPCA

Worth knowing

Flower color really tracks aluminum, not pH. Soil pH matters only because it decides whether the roots can take up aluminum; without it, flowers stay pink. per NC State

When to prune

Old-wood mopheads and lacecaps: prune right after flowering, before about August 1. Reblooming cultivars flower on old and new wood, so prune them in spring. per University of Maryland

How to change color

Acidic soil (pH 5.0 to 5.5) turns flowers blue; alkaline soil (pH 6.0 and up) turns them pink. Sulfur for blue, lime for pink; it takes months. per Clemson

White cultivars stay white

White hydrangeas stay white at any soil pH: they never make the pigment the color change needs, so amending the soil only risks nutrient problems. per Mississippi State

Buds are cold-tender

The roots are winter-hardy but the flower buds are not. Winter cold, drying wind or a late spring freeze can cost you next year's bloom. per NC State

Siting fights two diseases

Two leaf diseases pull opposite ways: powdery mildew is worse in deep shade, Cercospora leaf spot worse in full sun. Morning sun with afternoon shade fights both. per UConn

What pairs well with Bigleaf Hydrangea

Good companions share its growing conditions and add something it lacks: an earlier or later bloom, a lower carpet in front, or structure through winter.

Feathered Friends Fancy Finch Ajuga
Takes part sun to part shade and moderate to high water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; low at 4 in, to carpet the ground beneath; both offer pollinator forage, in different months.
Woodland Stonecrop
Takes part sun to part shade and moderate to high water; opens in mid spring and overlaps into this one's season; low at 8 in, to carpet the ground beneath; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter.
Eye Candy Moss Phlox
Takes full sun to part sun and moderate to high water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; low at 4 in, to carpet the ground beneath; both offer pollinator forage, in different months.
Coloratus Wintercreeper
Takes part sun to part shade and moderate to high water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; low at 8 in, to carpet the ground beneath; both offer pollinator forage, in different months.
Kinnikinnick
Takes full sun to part sun and moderate to high water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; low at 8 in, to carpet the ground beneath; both offer pollinator forage, in different months.
American Holly
Takes full sun to part sun and moderate to high water; blooms in late spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter.
Red Robin Photinia
Takes full sun to part sun and moderate to high water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter.
Autumn Crocus
Takes full sun to part sun and moderate to high water; blooms in early fall as this one finishes; low at 6 in, to carpet the ground beneath; both offer pollinator forage, in different months.