Fairytrail Fresco is the long-awaited colorful edition to the award-winning series of Cascade Hydrangeas! Large mophead flowers will be blue or pink, depending on soil chemistry. In production, treat with aluminum sulfate to ensure the best blue. As with the other varieties in the Fairytrail series, Fairytrail Fresco hydrangea sets flower buds at every leaf node, creating its distinctive cascading or garland-like effect. Foliage turns red in fall as a fun season extender. Developed by Ushio Sakazaki.

Growing Tips 

A minimum of six hours of sun is ideal for the strongest stems and the most abundant flowers. In hot climates, afternoon shade is beneficial, but some sun is still recommended for the best results.

The plants themselves are actually quite hardy - as hardy as H. macrophylla, perhaps a bit more. However, because they bloom so much earlier in the season than other hydrangeas, their flower buds are more susceptible to damage from unexpected spring frosts and freezes. To combat this, we have found that planting them in sights where they are shaded in the morning is very helpful. It allows any ice crystals on the plant to melt away very gradually, reducing the risk of tissue damage. Protecting them with old blankets on those spring nights and mornings when unusually cold weather threatens is also a viable approach. 

Cascade hydrangeas bloom on old wood, so it's best to avoid pruning them, except to remove any dead wood. These hydrangeas cannot be cut back or trimmed at any time of the year without impacting the bloom for either the current season or the next.

A 2-3" (5-7.6 cm) layer of shredded bark mulch helps shallow-rooted hydrangeas to conserve moisture and keep roots growing vigorously, which ensures the best performance. Fertilize in early spring, after the ground has thawed but before new growth begins, to ensure the best results.