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Little Lime® Panicle Hydrangea Hydrangea paniculata

Flower Season
  • Summer
  • Fall
Mature Size
5' 5' 1.5m 1.5m
Height: 3' - 5'
Spread: 3' - 5'
Height: 91cm - 1.5m
Spread: 91cm - 1.5m
Top Seller
  • Details

    36 - 60 Inches
    36 - 60 Inches
    36 - 60 Inches
    91cm - 1.5m
    91cm - 1.5m
    91cm - 1.5m

    Features

    Compared to its famous sibling ‘Limelight’, Little Lime hardy hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata) may seem like a pipsqueak. Don’t let this petite shrub fool you. While maintaining its short stature of 3-5’ tall and wide, it really packs a visual punch in the garden. In summer, lime green blooms open on strong stems – no drooping here. As it ages, rich pink coloring emerges to prolong the show through fall.

    Little Lime hydrangea is small enough to grow in containers and also stands out as a bold mass planting. Its bright bloom coloration makes it an excellent choice for cut flower gardens and can be used fresh or dried. This reliable performer blooms on new wood, so a quick trim in late winter or early spring will encourage fresh growth and an abundance of buds. Like most hardy hydrangeas, it is hardy to Zone 3 and does best in full sun or part shade.

    Summer flowers open soft green and turn pink and burgundy in fall.

    2016 - Selected as landscape plant of the year
    2015 - Awarded a Gold Medal from The Royal Boskoop Horticultural Society. 
    2013 - Awarded Plantarium Gold Medal
    2013 - Green is Life Bronze Medal 
    2011 - American Nursery & Landscape Association (ANLA) Management Clinic Best New Plant award.

    Best Seller
    Fall Interest
    Small or Miniature

    Characteristics

    Plant Type: 
    Shrub
    Shrub Type: 
    Deciduous
    Height Category: 
    Medium
    Garden Height: 
    36 - 60 Inches 91cm - 1.5m
    Spacing: 
    36 - 60 Inches 91cm - 1.5m
    Spread: 
    36 - 60 Inches 91cm - 1.5m
    Flower Colors: 
    Green
    Flower Colors: 
    Pink
    Flower Shade: 
    Green, turning pink in fall
    Foliage Colors: 
    Green
    Foliage Shade: 
    Green
    Habit: 
    Mounded
    Container Role: 
    Thriller

    Plant Needs

    Light Requirement: 
    Part Sun to Sun
    Light Requirement: 
    Sun

    The optimum amount of sun or shade each plant needs to thrive: Full Sun (6+ hours), Part Sun (4-6 hours), Full Shade (up to 4 hours).

    Maintenance Category: 
    Easy
    Blooms On: 
    New Wood
    Bloom Time: 
    Early Summer
    Bloom Time: 
    Mid Summer
    Bloom Time: 
    Late Summer
    Hardiness Zones: 
    3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
    Water Category: 
    Average
    Uses: 
    Border Plant
    Uses: 
    Container
    Uses: 
    Cut Flower
    Uses: 
    Dried Flower
    Uses: 
    Landscape
    Uses Notes: 

    Excellent for the mixed border or foundation plantings. This compact, hardy hydrangea fits easily into smaller landscapes, including container gardens.

    Maintenance Notes: 

    Prune in late winter/early spring. Apply a controlled release fertilizer in early spring. A supplemental dose of liquid feed may be needed in mid summer. Soil pH does not affect bloom color.

    Little Lime® Hydrangea paniculata 'Jane' USPP 22,330, Can 3,914
  • 41 Reviews

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    Browse reviews from people who have grown this plant.
    • I added one of these three years ago and it did well, so I added 5 more. I’m not sure why, but all of the additional shrubs I added have totally flopped after summer rain. We were in a drought for those three years the first was one was in, so maybe that’s why it didn’t flop. The lime to blush color of the bloom heads are amazing, it’s a shame they flop. I have a total of 27 hydrangeas, so I know it’s not something I am doing wrong.

      Heather
      , Iowa
      , United States
      , 14 weeks ago
    • I added one of these three years ago and it did well, so I added 5 more. I’m not sure why, but all of the additional shrubs I added have totally flopped after summer rain. We were in a drought for those three years the first was one was in, so maybe that’s why it didn’t flop. The lime to blush color of the bloom heads are amazing, it’s a shame they flop. I have a total of 27 hydrangeas, so I know it’s not something I am doing wrong.

      Heather Rogers
      , Iowa
      , United States
      , 14 weeks ago
    • My landscaper planted 4 of these in August of 2022. They survived the winter and were full of blooms by May. Unfortunately every one of them completely flopped over. They were almost completely prone. I trimmed off some of the heavy blooms but they remained bent over. I wound up staking them and tying twine around them for support. They still looked pretty awful. It is now mid March, and I will prune them back by about a third. I hope this will help them develop stronger stems which can support the flower heads, which are beautiful when they are upright.

      Eileen Rosenhagen
      , New York
      , United States
      , 39 weeks ago
    • I have had two of these for several years and they are beautiful. I must say though that even though I prune them every spring they are much taller than the 3-5 feet stated.

      Teri
      , Massachusetts
      , United States
      , 1 year ago
    • I purchased 7 of these plants for the side of our house. They came very nicely packaged and were very well taken care of. The soil was still moist, the plants were nicely trimmed. I planted them and have been watering them regularly. They are doing very well. I'll have to follow up with a picture from next year but I am very pleased!

      Denia88CV
      , Illinois
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • These survived and thrived! The front of the house is south facing and gets hit hard with sun & heat. All too often a plant description will claim "full sun" or "sun" and completely fail. But these little guys came through. Recently had a different "full sun" hydrangea peter out in the mid-July sun and could only think of one plant to replace it; one more Little Lime for the collection! The others dwell in a line next to the house and are bright & bushy despite the brick wall baking their backs. Want colorful & durable? Try these out.

      A.Shelly
      , Missouri
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • Little limelight has been a disappointment. Its stems keep flopping down after each rain and they stay that way. Not sure if that is a sign the plant doesn’t like its location. In any case, I was hoping for a much better performing plant. In contrast, little lime punch has been holding up its stem so beautifully. I guess PW has had some improvements on this new variety.

      Sam
      , 2 years ago
    • Planted this for the first time this spring. It immediately bloomed! Gorgeous show during the first summer! Excited to see the color change this fall. Highly recommend this to hydrangea lovers who are impatient for blooms.

      Cate
      , Kentucky
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • A stand out plant! I planted three Little Limes at a corner of my garden spring of 2021 to provide a tad more privacy without completely blocking the view. Such vigorous growers, and the blooms last SO long- I enjoyed them June - November. Honestly, I even enjoyed the dried brown blooms as winter interest. Now they’ve doubled in size, and I’m betting they’ll reach 4’-5’ by the end of this growing season.

      Kate
      , Georgia
      , United States
      , 2 years ago
    • This plant is soo beautiful! I have never had any interest in white/green flowers before… now it is the plant that always draws my eye and makes me smile as I walk to my front door. I’m buying many more this year! After many years of gardening, this plant tops my list much to my surprise:)

      Laura
      , Alberta
      , Canada
      , 2 years ago
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