Smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle'
Hydrangea arborescens 'Annabelle' · Hydrangeaceae Popular
Enormous white flower globes open lime-green, turn pure white and fade back to green. It flowers on new growth, so it blooms reliably even after a hard winter.
- Size
- 4 ft tall, 5 ft wide
- Zones
- 3 to 9
- Light
- Part sun to part shade
- Flowers
- Late June to early September
- Pets
- Toxic (mild)
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle'
The planner designed this bed around smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' when this page was made: a 16 × 8 ft (4.9 × 2.4 m) English border in zone 6, part sun. It chose the other plants from the 708 that suit those conditions, and says below why smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' × 1, white
- 2 Lingonberry × 8, pink
- 3 Mouse-ear coreopsis 'Nana' × 53, yellow
- 4 Canadian burnet × 4, white
- 5 Siberian iris 'Caesar's Brother' × 3, purple
- 6 Northern sea oats 'River Mist' × 3, green
- 7 Camassia × 5, blue
- 8 Easter lily × 4, white
- 9 Hyacinth 'Delft Blue' × 7, blue
Why this plant
- The only bold leaves here. The rest are fine and medium. A change of leaf keeps plants distinct when nothing is in flower.
- The only dense clusters. The others are bells, daisies, spires and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
- Part of the bed's structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down. So do lingonberry and northern sea oats 'River Mist'.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 4 ft it is one of the taller plants here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to canadian burnet (5 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for 11 weeks. From late June to early September.
- In company. With canadian burnet and northern sea oats 'River Mist' in mid August: 3 kinds at once.
Planned as an English border: 5 of the 6 groups (83%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. It is planted in layers: about 10 in at the front, 2 ft in the middle and 4 ft at the back. Lingonberry and mouse-ear coreopsis 'Nana' finish the front edge.
The planner's own design check: 10 Excellent, 7 Good.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' goes in a border
At 4 ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is moderately tall (3 to 4 ft).
Its job: anchor. A shrub that gives the bed permanent structure. Planted singly, as soon as the front edge is laid; everything else is arranged around it.
White shows up in shade and at dusk better than any colour, so this is the shrub for a dim corner. The heads are heavy and flop after rain; leave last year's stems at knee height for support, or plant something sturdy in front.
- A big white presence in part shade
- Woodland edges
- Dried flower heads for winter
What to plant with smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Hosta: its green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; spires rising out of its mound; low enough (18 in) to stand in front of it.
- Astilbe: red against green, opposite each other on the colour wheel, if you choose those colours, in flower together for four weeks; fine leaves against its bold ones; low enough (24 in) to stand in front of it.
- Japanese forest grass 'Aureola': its chartreuse leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; fine leaves against its bold ones; low enough (16 in) to stand in front of it.
Choosing between it and a look-alike? Panicle hydrangea 'Limelight' vs Smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle'.
Questions about smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle'
Does smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' need sun or shade?
Smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun) and part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and plenty of water.
What zones does smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 9. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late June to early September. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 3 | Early July to early September |
|---|---|
| Zone 4 | Early July to early September |
| Zone 5 | Late June to early September |
| Zone 6 | Late June to early September |
| Zone 7 | Late June to early September |
| Zone 8 | Late June to early September |
| Zone 9 | Mid June to early September |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' be planted?
4 ft (120 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 5 ft (150 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 4 ft (120 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' plants do I need?
Usually one. At 4 ft (120 cm) across, it is a plant you place, not one you mass. For a hedge or screen, set them 4 ft apart: three plants for a 10 ft run.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' poisonous to dogs and cats?
Yes: mild toxicity to people, dogs, cats and horses. Leaves and buds can cause vomiting and diarrhoea if eaten.
Rated from NC State Extension and the ASPCA. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.
Do deer eat smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle'?
They may. NC State does not list it as resistant to deer or rabbits. Where they visit, protect it, or plant it among ones they avoid.
Will smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' spread?
It spreads sideways, by runners or roots; the risk of it taking over is moderate. Spreads slowly by suckers into a wider clump. Remove the outer shoots to contain it.
What flowers after smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle'?
Smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' is over by early September. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Blue wood aster: from mid September to mid October, 3 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- White snakeroot: from late August to mid October, 3½ ft tall.
- Blue mistflower: from late August to mid October, 2½ ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' look like in winter?
Smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' drops its leaves and stands as bare branches: it is grown for dried flower heads for winter. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
Is smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' good for bees and butterflies?
Smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle' is visited by pollinators, butterflies, moths and songbirds.
It is a host plant: the caterpillars of hydrangea sphinx feed on its leaves. A butterfly can only lay its eggs on its host plants, so these do more for it than any nectar flower.
It is native to the United States (this is a named variety of the native plant).
More Hydrangea
- Bigleaf hydrangea Hydrangea macrophylla
- Bigleaf hydrangea 'Endless Summer' Hydrangea macrophylla 'Bailmer' (Endless Summer)
- Bigleaf hydrangea 'Nikko Blue' Hydrangea macrophylla 'Nikko Blue'
- Lacecap hydrangea 'Twist-n-Shout' Hydrangea macrophylla 'PIIHM-I' (Twist-n-Shout)
- Mountain hydrangea Hydrangea serrata
- Mountain hydrangea 'Bluebird' Hydrangea serrata 'Bluebird'
- Mountain hydrangea 'Tuff Stuff' Hydrangea serrata 'MAK20' (Tuff Stuff)
- Oakleaf hydrangea Hydrangea quercifolia
- Oakleaf hydrangea 'Alice' Hydrangea quercifolia 'Alice'
- Oakleaf hydrangea 'Munchkin' Hydrangea quercifolia 'Munchkin'
- Oakleaf hydrangea 'Pee Wee' Hydrangea quercifolia 'Pee Wee'
- Oakleaf hydrangea 'Ruby Slippers' Hydrangea quercifolia 'Ruby Slippers'
- Oakleaf hydrangea 'Snow Queen' Hydrangea quercifolia 'Snow Queen'
- Panicle hydrangea 'Bobo' Hydrangea paniculata 'Bobo'
- Panicle hydrangea 'Fire Light' Hydrangea paniculata 'SMHPFL' (Fire Light)
- Panicle hydrangea 'Limelight' Hydrangea paniculata 'Limelight'
- Panicle hydrangea 'Little Lime' Hydrangea paniculata 'Jane' (Little Lime)
- Panicle hydrangea 'Pinky Winky' Hydrangea paniculata 'DVP PINKY' (Pinky Winky)
- Panicle hydrangea 'Quick Fire' Hydrangea paniculata 'Quick Fire'
- Panicle hydrangea 'Tardiva' Hydrangea paniculata 'Tardiva'
- Panicle hydrangea 'Vanilla Strawberry' Hydrangea paniculata 'Vanilla Strawberry'
- PeeGee hydrangea Hydrangea paniculata 'Grandiflora'
- Smooth hydrangea 'Incrediball' Hydrangea arborescens 'Incrediball'
- Smooth hydrangea 'Invincibelle Spirit II' Hydrangea arborescens 'NCHA2' (Invincibelle Spirit II)
In these guides
- Salt-tolerant plants for roadsides and coasts
- Plants that grow near black walnut
- Plants for slopes and banks
- Garden plants toxic to cats
- Garden plants toxic to dogs
- Native plants for shade
- Plants for butterflies
- Plants that feed garden birds
- Shrubs under 4 feet for small gardens
- Host plants for the hydrangea sphinx
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 4 ft (120 cm) tall, 5 ft (150 cm) wide
- Plant
- 4 ft (120 cm) apart
- Height class
- Moderately tall (3 to 4 ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Late June to early September; dense clusters; white, green
- Leaves
- Bold texture, deciduous; green
- Shape
- Rounded, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 9
- Light
- Part sun, part shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- High
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Hydrangeaceae
- Comes from
- Eastern U.S
- Attracts
- Pollinators, butterflies, moths, songbirds
- Host plant for
- Hydrangea sphinx
- Stands up to
- Salt, black walnut, erosion
Checked against NC State Extension and ASPCA poison lists. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.