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The Hydrangea That Keeps On Giving
Dirr sees Endless Summer's value beyond its own ornament and as bloodstock for other re-blooming hydrangeas. Certainly its success has flushed out some other re-bloomers. Small towns in America are full of locally unique and quirky hydrangeas that are shared in the community as cuttings, said Gary Knox, a professor of horticulture at the University of Florida. "There's one here [in Quincy, Fla.] that's favored and passed around person to person," he said. "If it ever had a name it's been lost to time, and it's just known as Mrs. Blackburn's hydrangea."
Dirr has promoted re-bloomers named Penny Mac, Oak Hill and Decatur Blue. Breeders working under Dirr's direction (he is semi-retired from the university and lives in Chapel Hill, N.C.) have developed Blushing Bride, a cross between Endless Summer and a lacecap variety. The result is a mophead type, light cream in color, a slight pink or blue tint, and double flowers. Bailey Nurseries produced about 200,000 plants this year, with a full release of 2 million planned for next spring.
  Endless Summer, a hydrangea breakthrough. (Bailey Nurseries) |
He is working with another company, McCorkle Nurseries, in the distribution of others, including Mini Penny. This is a dwarf re-blooming hydrangea. (As gardens get smaller, breeders have been shrinking shrubs.)
He also is developing novel varieties of other species that have always bloomed on fresh growth. Annabelle is a long-established, showy version of the native smooth hydrangea, with a large, domed, white mophead. Dirr is working on versions with stronger stems, darker leaves and a better resistance to flopping over. He has applied for patents on two in particular: one white, one pink. He also has introduced a lacecap type called Lady in Red, with florets that are pink or blue but turn a velvety red, along with the plant's foliage, in the fall.
Naturally, Dirr thinks this is a golden time for hydrangea development, echoing the period in the early 20th century when French hybridizers developed the varieties popular today.
"I don't know why anybody down the road wouldn't want to buy anything that's not a remonant group," he said, referring to the gardener's term for re-flowering.
Meyer, of the Morris Aboretum, said the American garden has far more interesting varieties of plants than just a generation ago, and "a part of it is [due to] the concerted effort of people like Michael Dirr."
Dirr recalls shooting the breeze with a nurseryman friend. "We were kicking around whether all this new stuff was worth it, and I said, 'What do your customers say?' And he said, 'Nobody comes into my store and says, what's old?' "
