Hydrangea quercifolia ’Alice’ is the most robust oakleaf we grow. A selection by Dr. Michael Dirr from a plant on the University of Georgia campus it has proven to be trouble free. Give it room as the original plant is 12 feet high and as wide. BIG! And ROBUST! It produces very large, slightly fragrant, creamy-white blooms in early summer that age to a fine rose color as the summer proceeds. Prefers a bit of shade around here but will do as well in full sun if need be. Easy to grow, native and splendid - just don’t crowd it. Deciduous. Zones 5 - 9.

The search for a pink oakleaf can be as troublesome as the search for a blue rose, but recently with Hydangea q. ’Amethyst’ the cause has been advanced. This oakleaf selection starts white but colors very quickly to a nice pink on a fairly short plant to about 6 feet high & 6 feet wide. Deciduous, best flower color in lots of sun but it sure appreciates some shade in the hot afternoon. Zones 5-9.

’Harmony’ is an unusual oakleaf hydrangea. Rather than being conical the shape and mass of the flower head is routund and mounded, rather like the bloom on the Chinese Snowball viburnum.
Attempts to give it a common name that reflects the appearance of the full congested bloom range from "Sheep’s Head Hydrangea" to Gene’s suggestion that it is a bit like the heap of mashed potatoes in the bowl your family serves at Thanksgiving before Uncle Ellis digs in and ruins the presentation (often before or even during grace). It is much more handsome than those names suggest as it is stunning as a mature shrub: large of stature, foliage that turns dark maroon in fall, and breathtaking white blooms in late spring. We got our stock plants from the Aldridge family in Alabama who introduced both ’Harmony’ and ’Snowflake’ many years ago. Harmony was shown to them by J C McDaniel, also a native of AL but then a professor of horticulture at the University of Illinois, Urbana. Everything we’ve read about professor McDaniel makes us think of all the generous nursery folks we’ve been lucky to know. There was a time when generosity with plants was more important than patent royalties, and good plants were to be shared. Were it still so. Deciduous, 6 to 8’, for sun or part shade, native and unique. Zones 5-9.

A new oakleaf hydrangea bred by the National Arboretum and released in 2010. After 9 years in their shrub trial, Munchkin was 3 feet tall and 4.5 feet wide making it an oakleaf for even the smallest garden. It has a dense, compact habit with upright flowers in early summer that open white and slowly age to a medium pink (if grown in adequate sun). Gives Pee Wee and Sikes Dwarf reason to be saving for retirement. Zones 5 - 9.

Alabama oakleafs. We are blessed. Let us plant. This is another discovery from the sand hills area of Alabama and one of the smallest of the native oakleaf hydrangeas that we know. Hydrangea quercifolia ’Pee Wee’ grows to about 4’ with a wider spread. The bloom is a cone of white flowers, the sepals periwinkle like. Tardily deciduous with deep red fall foliage if grown in enough sun. Early season, sun to bright shade. Zones 5-9.

Great, newly released oakleaf hydrangea from the shrub breeding program of the National Arboretum in McMinnville, TN. At 7 years old, ’Ruby Slippers’ was 3.5 tall and 5 feet wide, so while it is impressive it is not huge. The 9 inch long flowers open white but rapidly become pale pink and age to rose. We sold our first crop rapidly and have rooted more, some of which are ready in a 3 quart size. Zones 5 - 9.

A Yankee from New Jersey, ’Snow Queen’ produces large panicles of pure white held above the foliage. If you are looking for a larger oakleaf that won’t spill out into paths, walkways or patios she will fill the bill. Confused about the difference between ’Snow Queen’ and ’Snowflake’? ’Snow Queen’ is the regal one, with upright bearing and head held high. Queenly indeed. Originally introduced by Princeton Nurseries in 1979. Zones 5-9. 6’ x 6’. Some images courtesy of Raulston Arboretum.

Hydrangea quercifolia ’Wade Mahlke’ is often referred to as "Emerald Lake" as it was introduced by Mr. Mahlke who lives on Emerald Lake in AL. I believe we first got it via plantsman, Hayes Jackson, but if so we killed that one. In 2004 we took cuttings of it at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens who had it tagged as "Emerald Lake." It’s a mostly sterile form like ’Harmony’, ’Roanoke’ or ’Vaughn’s Lillie’. Height to 7 feet and as wide. Zones 5 - 9.