Hydrangeas are a delight to cultivate, demanding minimal attention if they're sited correctly for the specific variety you're nurturing. The payoff is a dazzling display of blooms throughout the summer, which look just as magnificent in the garden or on a patio in a decorative pot, as they do inside when fashioned into a striking cut flower arrangement. With a bit of tender loving care, your hydrangeas will flourish more with each passing year.
Yet, for optimal flowering, it's crucial to fertilise these shrubs appropriately. Green-fingered enthusiasts from the Fowlet blog suggest that concocting your own homemade plant food is the "perfect solution". Read More Related Articles UK households with fox in garden warned they face £5,000 fine Read More Related Articles Households in England who have driveways face new 'tax per metre' They remarked: "By using simple ingredients found in your household, you can nourish your hydrangeas naturally ensuring optimal growth and vibrant blooms," reports the Express .
The gardening gurus advocate for the DIY plant food approach because it supplies essential nutrients like potassium, calcium, and magnesium, which are "essential for the overall health and growth of hydrangeas". These elements are "crucial" in fostering root development, "enhancing flowering and improving the overall vigour" of the plants. Adding Epsom salt to plants has been reported to enhance the colour of blossoms and leaves (Image: (Image: Getty)) Moreover, homemade plant food allows for tailoring to the unique nutritional requirements of your hydrangeas, "promoting healthier growth and more beautiful flowers".
A particularly "simple and effective" recipe they spotlight has merely four components - Epsom salt, baking soda, fish emulsion, and vinegar. For this concoction, blend one tablespoon of Epsom salt with one teaspoon of baking soda in a gallon-sized vessel. Add one tablespoon of fish emulsion and one teaspoon of vinegar to the mixture.
Fill the container with water and stir until all the ingredients are well combined. Hydrangeas need fertiliser to grow the best blooms (Image: (Image: Getty)) Apply the homemade hydrangea feed to the soil around the flowers and plants once every two weeks. For those who prefer to use organic ingredients, there is another DIY hydrangea feeding solution that's a "great choice" - it uses eggshells.
Boil a handful of crushed eggshells in a pot filled with water. Allow the mixture to cool, then strain out the eggshells. Transfer the eggshell-infused water to a spray bottle.
Mist the leaves of your hydrangeas with the solution once a week..
