shrub
Bigleaf hydrangea 'Endless Summer'
Hydrangea macrophylla 'Bailmer'
Preview: plant data is awaiting horticulturist review. A professional horticulturist hasn't reviewed our plant table yet. Lists still follow fixed rules for zone, sun, pets, deer and invasive status.
Hardy in zones 5–9, Bigleaf hydrangea 'Endless Summer' is a fast-growing deciduous shrub. It grows 3–5 ft tall and 3–5 ft wide, so plant it 3.5 ft apart. Give it part sun to part shade and steady moisture. It flowers blue and pink in June to September. In a FloraVista list it usually plays the structure role: a shrub that holds the bed's shape at the back all year. Deer do eat it, and it is toxic to dogs and cats. Our rules leave it out of lists in the Desert Southwest, where summer heat, humidity or mild winters hold it back even inside its zone range.
Facts from our plant table
- Botanical name
- Hydrangea macrophylla 'Bailmer'
- Plant type
- Shrub, deciduous
- Hardiness zones
- 5 to 9
- Sun
- Part sun (4–6 hours); Part shade (2–4 hours)
- Water
- High
- Soil
- Acidic soil gives blue flowers, alkaline soil pink.
- Mature size
- 3–5 ft tall × 3–5 ft wide
- Spacing
- 3.5 ft apart (centre to centre)
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Bloom
- Jun–Sep · blue and pink
- Roles in a bed
- Structure
- Styles
- cottage, classic
- Deer resistance
- Low: deer eat it
- Pets
- Toxic to dogs and cats. Hydrangea is on the ASPCA toxic list (cyanogenic glycosides).
- Native to
- Not native to the US (or a garden hybrid)
- Pot size and price
- 3-gallon pot, typically $35–$55 (easy to find)
- Plant in
- Spring or Fall
- First-year watering
- Keep the soil evenly moist the first year; water two to three times a week in hot, dry weather.
- Pruning
- Remove dead wood in spring; deadhead in summer. Avoid fall pruning.
Sources: Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder; ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant list; Rutgers NJAES deer resistance ratings (A-D); state noxious weed lists / Invasive Plant Atlas of the US; typical 2026 US garden-centre and big-box listings. Not yet reviewed by a horticulturist.
Guides that include this plant
- What to plant in a part-shade bed in zone 6 (as a substitute)
Good companions
The plants our list engine most often puts in the same bed as Bigleaf hydrangea 'Endless Summer', across the sun, zone, pet, deer and style combinations it fits.
- Japanese sedge 'Evergold'Carex oshimensis 'Evergold'ornamental grass · zones 5–9
- Hardy geranium 'Rozanne'Geranium 'Gerwat' (Rozanne)perennial · zones 5–8
- Catawba rhododendron 'Roseum Elegans'Rhododendron catawbiense 'Roseum Elegans'shrub · zones 4–8
- Bee balmMonarda didymaperennial · zones 4–9
- Astilbe 'Fanal'Astilbe × arendsii 'Fanal'perennial · zones 4–8
- Japanese forest grass 'Aureola'Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola'ornamental grass · zones 5–9
If you can't find it
Substitutes our engine offers for Bigleaf hydrangea 'Endless Summer': same role in the bed, passing the same rules.
- Smooth hydrangea 'Annabelle'Hydrangea arborescens 'Annabelle'zones 3–9 · flagged toxic to pets
- Oakleaf hydrangea 'Ruby Slippers'Hydrangea quercifolia 'Ruby Slippers'zones 5–9 · flagged toxic to pets
- Weigela 'Wine & Roses'Weigela florida 'Alexandra'zones 4–8 · not flagged toxic to pets
- Arrowwood viburnum 'Blue Muffin'Viburnum dentatum 'Christom'zones 3–8 · not flagged toxic to pets
How this page was made
This page was generated from this plant's record in FloraVista's plant table by fixed rules. The companions and substitutes come from the lists our rules engine composes. No named expert has reviewed this page.
Data status: the plant table is awaiting review by a horticulturist. Check each plant with a local nursery or extension office before you buy.
Sources
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, state extension services and the USDA PLANTS database (zones, size, sun, water, bloom, native range)
- ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists (dog and cat toxicity)
- Rutgers NJAES and regional extension deer-resistance ratings
- State noxious-weed and invasive-plant lists and the Invasive Plant Atlas of the US
- Typical US garden-centre listings (pot size and price band)
Generated . How FloraVista chooses plants