Container contender

Container gardening is more popular than ever.

Gardeners are looking to expand their opportunities for growing unique plants without taking up lots of space. More gardeners are discovering that growing perennials and shrubs in containers opens the door to a longer season of continuous colour, and the chance to grow a wider range of exciting new varieties.

One of the top plant choices for container gardens in 2026 will be hydrangea. “Hydrangeas continue to be one of the best-selling shrubs across North America,” says Ryan McEnaney, marketing and communications manager for Bailey Nurseries, a fifth-generation, family-owned wholesale nursery headquartered in St. Paul, Minn.

“The home gardener’s excitement for hydrangeas is palpable for those of us who work behind the scenes to bring new hydrangeas to market,” says McEnaney. “Growing hydrangeas in decorative pots provides the perfect opportunity for enhancing patios, porches and decks — spaces where maybe gardeners didn’t think they could grow a hydrangea.”

Not only will this design trend add instant character to your outdoor space, but your options won’t be limited. “We see all these exciting new plants come out each year, and we want the opportunity to play with them even if that means only for a season. With containers, we get to push our gardening zone,” says McEnaney.

But with so many hydrangea varieties on the market, aren’t there already enough to choose from?

“What the home gardener is telling us is, yes, if it is a better performer and something that is really and truly unique and different to what exists today,” says McEnaney. “That’s a crucial element for Bailey Nurseries. It’s a really crowded field. We don’t want to put out another hydrangea just for the sake of having something new.”

First Editions Spring Sizzle Panicle Hydrangea is an exciting new introduction for 2026 from Bailey Nurseries which will bring something unique to your outdoor space. Hardy to Zone 3, Spring Sizzle is one of the earliest blooming panicle hydrangeas.

“Of all the panicle hydrangeas we have in our trials, Spring Sizzle has been the first one to bloom,” says McEnaney. “At our trial facility just outside St. Paul, we are seeing flowers in full bloom in June. Typically, on a panicle hydrangea, full flower doesn’t happen until around mid-July, so with Spring Sizzle you get that reliable ability to flower, but it’s earlier in the season.”

Parade of blooms

Spring Sizzle’s white flowers quickly transform to deep red as early as July. “So, when you think about succession planting for flowers, Spring Sizzle is a great one to have earlier in the season to give you that hydrangea bloom and colour,” says McEnaney. “If you also have a panicle hydrangea like, say, Berry White, which flowers in July and gives you transitional colour in August, then you have this parade of hydrangea blooms throughout the season.”

The blooms on Spring Sizzle are held up by strong stems that won’t flop. With an upright, vase-like shape, Spring Sizzle is hardy to Zone 3 and is suitable for a full-sun to part-sun location. In the landscape, Spring Sizzle will grow to a mature height of 1.2 metres or higher.

But if you don’t have a garden bed, or have run out of space and would like to grow Spring Sizzle, plant it in a decorative pot at least 53-cm wide and deep. (Shrubs have larger root systems than annuals and perennials.)

Can a hardy hydrangea shrub stay in a deco pot on your patio or porch for the winter? In a word, no. A container does not offer adequate winter protection for the root systems of plants.

The benefit of growing Spring Sizzle hydrangea as a container plant for a single season is that its showy blooms will create a stunning focal point as well as long-lasting colour from spring to October. Few annuals possess that staying power.

This year, Bailey Nurseries introduced FlowerFull Smooth Hydrangea which has white flowers on sturdy stems that won’t flop, and two- to three-times more blooms than other smooth hydrangeas. FlowerFull’s superior performance compared to other smooth hydrangeas on the market has garnered rave reviews. “We saw an immense response to FlowerFull on social media by both home gardeners and nurseries. It’s been really exciting,” says McEnaney, who grew FlowerFull in containers this year and was thrilled with the results.

Bailey Nurseries will also introduce Endless Summer DreamCloud Reblooming Hydrangea in 2026. Now, it’s fair to say that early introductions from the Zone 4 Endless Summer Bigleaf Hydrangea series have not exactly been a roaring success in our Zone 3 climate. Some varieties such as the Original or Twist-n-Shout, as lovely as they may be, don’t flower until September.

DreamCloud, says McEnaney, is a distinct improvement. “We want as bud-hardy a plant as we can get, but the other really important part is how fast can we get it to rebloom?”

DreamCloud Reblooming Hydrangeas have the genetic ability to bloom on new wood sooner and rebloom faster on new growth, says McEnaney. “In addition, it has white flowers that hold their white (tone) a little longer before it blushes to fall colour. It’s that nice little palette cleanser in the midst of bright colour.”

If you wish you could grow mophead (macrophylla) hydrangeas but haven’t been successful, give DreamCloud a try. Grow it in the landscape or let it put on a show in your patio containers with its compact form and brighter, longer-lasting white mophead blooms.

Don’t skimp on the amount of sunlight, though. A location with morning sun and afternoon shade may not be enough. “It’s nice in that really hot part of the day to have some dappled shade or bright shade, but Endless Summer hydrangeas can take a bit more sun in Zones 3, 4 and 5. We have that shorter window to develop flowers so sunlight gives that extra little boost of energy.”

Bailey Nurseries has a close relationship with wholesale growers in Canada including Jeffries Nurseries in Portage la Prairie and Aubin Nurseries in Carman. Both Jeffries and Aubin will be offering Spring Sizzle panicle hydrangea and DreamCloud Reblooming Hydrangea to local garden centres in 2026.

This year, I grew Eclipse Bigleaf Hydrangea and Little Hottie Panicle Hydrangea, two recent introductions from Bailey Nurseries, in containers in my garden. Both were outstanding. Eclipse is the first dark-leaf mophead hydrangea to feature extraordinary dark-purple leaves all season long. The massive flowers are a rich cranberry colour with pink-and-white centres. Eclipse is hardy to Zone 5, so I grew it as an annual.

Little Hottie has white flower panicles that transition to antique pink. I planted two Little Hottie shrubs in containers where they bloomed non-stop, right through to mid-October. Hardy to Zone 3, they will spend the winter in my vegetable garden, because I have no space left in my shrub beds. Next spring, I will return them to the containers beside my front door.

colleenizacharias@gmail.com