The first hydrangeas came to us from China and Japan, where the garden beauties quickly found a large following. Many legends are entwined around the botanical and German name of the plants, some of which are just as enchanting as the flowers of the hydrangea.

Latin name of hydrangea

The name hydrangea first appears in the 1739 Flora Virginica, a description of the plants found in the North American state of Virginia. It is derived from the Greek terms hydro = water and anion. Angeion describes the jug-shaped flower shape of the hydrangea.

Hippolito Ruiz Lopez and Antonio Pavon y Jiminez collected wild forms of the hydrangea in South America and also described the flowering shrub in 1798. However, they gave the hydrangea the generic name Cornidia, which is no longer in use.

Hydrangeas are conquering German parks

What is believed to be the first hydrangea in Europe was introduced from America in 1736 by Peter Collison. Around the year 1800, the first hydrangeas, cultivated in large pots, adorned the beautifully landscaped parks of Pillnitz and Weesenstein in Saxony

Origin of the German plant name

According to legend, the botanist Commerson gave the name Hortensia/Hydrangea in 1771 in honor of a lady. For this, three women close to the plant lover come into question:

  • Hortense Barré, who accompanied the young botanist on an expedition to America.
  • The well-known astronomer Hortense Lepaute, wife of a good friend of Commerson.
  • Madame Hortense de Nassau, a daughter of the Prince of Nassau. Her father also took part in a scientific trip with Commerson.

All these naming explanations sound very romantic. What is most likely, however, is that the name was simply derived from the Latin term "hortus" (garden).
In any case, the opinion that the hydrangea was named after a daughter of Empress Josephine is wrong. The girl was born several years after the German naming of the hydrangea.

Known species and their botanical names

  • Hydrangea mycrophylla (garden hydrangea, peasant hydrangea), referred to as Hydrogena hortensia by Siebold in 1829 and Hydrangea hortensis by Smith in 1799
  • Hydrangea arborescens (Snowball Hydrangea)
  • Hydrangea quercifolia (Oakleaf Hydrangea)
  • Hydrangea anomala ssp. Petiolaris (Climbing Hydrangea)
  • Hydrangea paniculata ssp. "Grandiflora" (panicle hydrangea)

tips and tricks

Beautiful collections of blooming hydrangea bushes can be seen in Belgium, Holland and England. Almost 800 species of the romantic flowering shrubs are currently cultivated in France.

Category:

Vegetable garden