Hydrangeas inspire both professional and amateur gardeners with their beauty and versatility, but need proper care to ensure colorful blooms year after year.

Heritage Museums & Gardens, the largest public garden in Southern New England, is offering a Hydrangea Success Series that will deepen knowledge of Cape Cod’s most iconic flower and increase growing success.

This year,there will be seven workshops throughout 2019 including Hydrangea Pruning,Planting and Replanting, Irrigation, Propagation, Companion Planting, Growing in Containers, and Winterizing, all led by Heritage’s Hydrangea Curator, Mal Condon, who has been collecting, propagating, and growing hydrangeas for more than 40 years.

He and his wife Mary Kay owned and operated Hydrangea Farm Nursery on Nantucket Island for many years. Early in 2014 they relocated to Yarmouth Port on Cape Cod and are busy establishing a significant garden in their new location. Mal is known as “the hydrangea whisperer” at Heritage, and is totally committed to ongoing maintenance of all existing hydrangea plantings as well as to the continuing expansion of Heritage’s hydrangea gardens.

You can register for three or all seven workshops in the series to receive a discounted rate.

The Hydrangea Pruning Workshop, April 13 or 14, provides information on how to selectively prune plants to improve vigor, increase bloom density, control height, and enhance ornamental value.

In the Planting and Replanting Workshop, May 9 or 11, participants learn planting techniques as well assoil creation and amendment procedures.

The Irrigation Workshop, June 27 or 29, is directed to the home gardener. Participants will learn about successful irrigation for hydrangeas. In Propagation, August 1, Mal Condon, will share the details of his plant propagation techniques developed specifically for the home garden.

In the fifth workshop, Companion Planting, August 15 or 17, Horticulturist Laura Swain and Curator of Hydrangeas Mal Condon, will simplify the process of selecting plants to complement and highlight hydrangeas throughout the season.

In the Growing in Containers Workshop, September 14 or 15, participants will learn about the the growth and protection attributes Condon recommends through his “Pot-N-Pot” and “Bag-N-Pot” growing techniques.

Rounding out the season, the final workshop, Winterizing, November 1 or 2, Heritage Hydrangea Curator Mal Condon will demonstrate the best techniques he has developed for protecting hydrangeas from the ravages of winter.

Advance registration is recommended. Register for all seven workshops in the series to receive a discounted rate: $100 Member Series; $160 Non-Member Series – That’s seven workshops for less than the price of six!  Pick any three workshops and receive a discounted price:  $45 Members, $75 Non-Members. Participants may also register for individual programs in the series.

For more information, or to register, visit heritagemuseums.org.

Heritage opens on April 27, 10 am-5 pm daily, through October 14. Additional hydrangea events at Heritage include the Hydrangea Festival, July 12-21, which features the expanded North American Hydrangea Test Garden, representing the most comprehension collection of hydrangeas in the United States, workshops and book signings, plant sales, and garden tours.

On July 12, Heritage will host Hydrangea University, with seminars that will inspire and educate gardeners on the genus hydrangea. Lastly, on October 5 Heritage will offer a Cutting and Drying Hydrangeas Workshop which will include tips and techniques for cutting and drying fresh flowers, and some creative prompts for designing with dried flowers with Horticulturist Laura Swain and members of the Cape Cod Hydrangea Society.