‘Annabelle' is a bit like Garrison Keillor's famous Lake Woebegone, the little town that time forgot that the decades cannot improve. Smooth hydrangeas are native in much of the eastern United States, so changes were bound to occur. In the 1960s, a horticulture professor discovered that a smooth hydrangea growing in Anna, Illinois, grew bigger white flowers than the traditional species. Since then, the decades cannot improve this stalwart performer.
Name: 'Annabelle' (Hydrangea arborescens 'Annabelle')
Hydrangea type: Smooth
Growing conditions: Sun to part sun. Provide extra water in extreme heat. Prune in late winter to early spring to encourage new growth and blooms. Flower heads may flatten with heavy rain and stalks may splay if the flower heads grow very large. Support blooms and stems with fencing or plant several shrubs close together, spacing about 3 feet apart, so they hold each other up.
Size: 5 feet tall and wide
Zones: 3 to 9
Source: Widely available
