I’ve been feeling a little uninspired about my next blog post recently due to my lack of having a green thumb. However, when I was home for Easter break, my parents were having a discussion about their landscaping plans for this spring now that the weather is finally warming up. My Mom’s favorite plants in the yard are her hydrangea bushes. We’ve given her hydrangea plants the past three years for Mother’s Day. This year my Mom wants to add a fourth plant. So I seized the opportunity engage in their conversation about the planting plans! I asked my mom why she likes hydrangeas so much. She told me about all of the times that her and my Dad vacationed on the Cape when they first got married. They would stay at my grandparents cottage (which is now owned by my Aunt and Uncle) that was surrounded by hydrangea bushes. My grandfather always took great care to bring out the deep blue/violet color in the blossoms of the plants that decorated the landscape of the cottage. I find myself hanging out with my cousins every summer at that same cottage, and my Aunt and Uncle have kept up the tradition of caring for these plants.
My Dad has explained to me that it is easy to get that deep color on the Cape because of the abundance of pine trees and sandy soil which make it an acidic, well-draining environment where they like to live. At my house in Franklin we have the fortune of owning a property surrounded by pine trees and the same type of sandy soil! My parents are also thrilled to be able to get beautiful results with very little effort because they too lack green thumbs. I understand a little better now that it is important to know the type of conditions plants like to live in to be able to thrive.