Alice Oakleaf Hydrangea

Alice is a large oakleaf hydrangea, reaching 5 to 8 feet tall and wide, with flower panicles that run up to a foot long. Hydrangea quercifolia 'Alice' grows in part sun to part shade, hardy from Zone 5 through Zone 9, and takes three or four seasons to reach full size.

The panicles open pure white in early summer, hold for weeks, then age to rose pink and finally tan. They dry on the plant and stand through winter.

Fall color is the strongest part of the year for this one. The deeply lobed oak-shaped leaves turn deep wine red and hold late into the season, and the older stems peel in cinnamon-brown strips that show once the leaves drop.

Oakleaf hydrangea is native to the Southeast and handles more sun and drought than the bigleaf types once established, though it wants steady moisture through the first year or two. Give it room, since this is one of the larger selections and it does not respond well to being cut back to fit. It flowers on old wood, so the buds form the previous summer and hard spring pruning costs you the display.