Dig into Plants: Oakleaf Hydrangea

Oakleaf Hydrangea Scientific Name: Hydrangea quercifolia Native to Alabama: Yes Official state wildflower of Alabama
	Oakleaf Hydrangea Wikimedia - Anne Norman Click on image to enlarge it

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Basic Plant Information
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Stephanie Brundage Click on image to enlarge it	I am a vasuclar plant with woody stems above ground, so I am shrub. I do not keep leaves year-round, so I am deciduous. I die back in winter but regrow in spring for many seasons, so I am perennial. I can grow 4 - 8 feet high and 6 - 8 feet wide.

Ecological Benefits

This plant provides food for:

Butterflies		Other Pollinators				Other Birds

Other Plants Found in Alabama with Similar Ecological Benefits:
Smooth Hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens)

Maintenance Notes
Dormant in winter. Flowers can be cut for an indoor vase. Flowers remain on the plant throughout the winter. Although pruning is not necessary, it can be cut back after flowering to help keep the plant smaller in size. Stems damaged in the winter can be pruned in the spring.
Using mulch in the summer help keep the ground moist. When watering, hold hose to base of plant for a count of 5 seconds. Water should reach all roots. Avoid sprinkling water on the leaves. Until established, water two times per week during the summer and once per week during the rest of the year.

Habitat Requirements

This plant prefers:
Full Sun (6+ hours of sun per day) Part Sun/ Shade (2-6 hours of sun per day)		Average Watering	Well-drained, Loamy, or Moist Soil

Leaf, Flower, and Seed Identification

LEAF DESCRIPTION					Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Stephanie Brundage Click on image to enlarge it
Leaf Characteristics Chart (PDF)

Shape: Ovate	Margin: Lobed or Serrate		Arrangement: Opposite	Form: Simple


Description:
Leaves resemble red oak leaves and are 4 - 12 inches in length and have 3-7 lobes; The leaves are bright green on the upper surface and have hairs on the underside giving them a greyish color; Leaves turn shades of yellow, orange, red, or purplish in the fall.


FLOWER DESCRIPTION				Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Alan Cressler Click on image to enlarge it
Flower Shapes Chart (JPG)

Color: White, greenish, pinkish purple	Shape: Cross-shaped		Bloom Months: May - Jul

Description:
Flowers are arranged on a structure called a panicle which contains 500-1,000 individual flowers; Panical is pyramidal in shape ranging from 4 - 12 inches long and 3 - 4 inches wide; Contains two different types of individual flowers; Marginal flowers are larger and appear white or greenish white in color; Smaller flowers are white in color and turn a purpleish-pink clor as the season progresses; The small flowers are fragrant and are the ones that can be fertilized through pollination.				Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Alan Cressler Click on image to enlarge it

SEED DESCRIPTION			Wikimedia Derek Ramsey Click on image to enlarge it

Type: Fruit - Capsule	Description: Small; Hemispherical brown/copper-colored capsule	Months in Seed: Fall

Plant Spreads By:
Seeds In the fall, the small seeds are dispersed by the wind. When they reach a favorable environment with good soil, they can begin growing into a new plant.

BARK DESCRIPTION		Flickr Henryr10 Click on image to enlarge it

Color: Fruit - Capsule	Texture: Exfoliating (shredding): appears paper-like

Description:
Bark is light brown or orange in color. As the bark ages, it becomes exfoliating (shredding) to reveal inner bark that is darker brown. Young bark on new stems has small hairs.

Plant Life Cycle
Plant Life Cycle: All plants start life as a seed. The seed turns into a sprout when it grows roots. The sprout becomes a seedling as grows a stem and leaves above the ground. After the seedling becomes an adult plant it will grow flowers. After the flowers finish blooming, each flower turns into a seed. When the seeds fall down to the ground, the plant life cycle starts again. Each seed can become a plant if it has the food, water and space that it needs to grow.	General Plant Life Cycle - Dreamstime Click on image to enlarge it

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR TEACHERS

Quick Fact Sheet
(Condensed Species Info)

Plant ID Sign:
Ready as-is PDF

Plant ID Sign:
Editable Word Doc

QR Code
(Links to this Webpage)

INFORMATION SOURCES FOR THIS PLANT

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center's Plant Database		USDA Plants Database
Alabama Plant Atlas		North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Missouri Botanical Garden

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