Phantom Hydrangea is in the panicle family of hydrangeas. That means that it is super hardy and a very predictable bloomer. It blooms on current years growth. That means that the plant starts growing like crazy in the spring, then come mid summer it stops growing and makes a flower bud on the end of each new branch. That’s why they almost never fail to bloom.
Phantom Hydrange is hardy in zones 3 to 8.
When I planted these five plants in the spring of 2020 they were very small plants, just a tad bigger than rooted cuttings. They took off growing like crazy and made a ton of flowers in their first year.
Phantom can grow to a height of 48″ to 60″ but you can prune them all you want and they will still bloom. I cut mine back really hard in the fall, that way when they take off growing the following spring they stay nice and tight and compact.
The ideal time to prune them is anytime after they finish blooming until early spring.
As the blooms mature they turn a beautiful pink color. Bloom time is July through September.
Phantom loves full sun and will tolerate partial shade.
I actually cut mine back in very early spring because I collect the branches that I remove and use them to make hardwood cuttings. I now do all of my hardwood cuttings in the late winter, early spring because it just works so much better for me. I used to do Hardwood Cuttings in November/December. See these two links;
and this; https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2016/09/hardwood-cuttings-winter-of-20152016/
In this post you can see Pam and I making hydrangea cuttings with our two youngest grandkids. https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2019/03/a-really-easy-way-to-make-lots-and-lots-of-new-plants/
Questions, comments, mean things to say? Post them below and I’ll respond.
Mike – thanks for this info. My new Phantom flowers look just as your pictures do with some pink splotches and some browning. Is the browning normal and to be expected?
Kristine,
Yes, the browning is the fading of the flowers, the heat moves them along quicker.
Glad to come upon this article Mike! I planted 2 Phantom Hydrangeas in April 2020 and I am in Zone 7. They were about 2 feet tall and full of leaves when I purchased them. I planted them in a raised soil bed. They seemed to be doing great for a couple of months and then the leaves on both started turning brown and dying off. At first I thought that they were getting too much sun even though there is a large tree that partially shades them. I researched and read that they do well in sun. Finally, I figured that they had a fungus and got some fungal spray. I started a weekly regimen of fungal spray and cut off all the brown, dying leaves. They have grown new leaves very quickly and I had several flowers on one of them but the other has yet to flower. I’m hoping they will do better next year. At any rate, thanks for all of the information you provide! You are very helpful to us less experienced gardeners!
You’re welcome Janey.