How do you care for a Mac Penny Hydrangea?

Hydrangeas are low maintenance plants that should be kept in partial sun or partial shade area. Thrives in acidic well-drained soil and likes to have moist soil.

How big do Penny Mac hydrangeas get?

Penny Mac Hydrangeas grow to be 4-6 ft tall and wide.

How do I make my hydrangeas blue with pennies?

Pennies won't help to turn your hydrangea flowers blue but making the soil more acidic will. To do this add peat moss or coffee grounds to raise the acidity.

Where is the best place to plant hydrangeas?

The best place to plant your hydrangea plant is in partial sun or partial shade area that has rich, well-draining soil.

Penny Mac Hydrangea Shrub

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Pink, Blue, or a mix of both! Pick your flower color based on the soil ph

*If you would like to be added to the Penny Mac Hydrangea wait list please send us a message via our chat or email*

This popular plant, the Penny Mac Hydrangea shrub (hydrangea macrophylla penny mac), is very low maintenance. Yet it provides a prolific display of beautiful mophead flowers continuously throughout the summer – perfect for the time – pressed planter!

One of the best varieties of the newer cultivars of the popular garden hydrangea, the Penny Mac was awarded a Louisiana Super Plant selection for spring 2012. It was aptly named after Penny McHenry from Atlanta Georgia, who is the founder of the American Hydrangea Society in 1994. She received the original plant as a gift and it has been cloned ever since in her honor.

Mini penny hydrangeas tend to have blue flowers in acidic soils and pink flowers in more alkaline soils depending on the soil pH. The dark green leaves will stay on the shrub until the first frost and contrast the blooming mophead flowers nicely.

For best results, begin soil treatments well before the Penny Mac Hydrangea flowers in late autumn or early spring. We have seen color mixtures of pink, blue, and purple on this repeat bloomer and it is seriously gorgeous!

Penny Mac Hydrangea Planting

This blue hydrangea cultivar thrives in rich, well-drained soils and prefers partial shade unless grown in consistently moist soil. A slow release fertilizer at the top of the root ball annually will encourage new growth.

This acid loving plant is the perfect shrub for dappled shade in your backyard. The flower color can be changed by adding pH-changing substances to the soil. To make the large flowers have blue blooms add aluminum sulfate to their soil. To see more pink flower buds add dolomite lime the soil.

Creates a gorgeous pink/blue display in any yard or landscape.

Penny Mac Hydrangea Pruning

This deciduous shrub generally does not need much pruning. Hydrangea blooms on new wood so pruning dead wood from the previous year is okay. You can also prune crossed branches or to maintain desired size and shape.

It will stay small and compact if planted in a small space. It can grow up to 4-6 feet tall and wide with ample room to establish its root system. Water thoroughly the first year of planting to establish before winter.

Grow across the United States in USDA growing zones 5-9. The mophead hydrangea plant is extremely cold hardy and is pest and disease resistant.

Shop the Penny Mac Hydrangea for sale.

Be sure to check out our Hydrangea Grow Guide and Why is my Hydrangea Wilting, for more information on growing hydrangeas!

Botanical Name

Hydrangea macrophylla 'Penny Mac'

Sunlight Partial Sun / Partial Shade

Flower Color Blue, pink

Foliage Color Green

Mature Height 4-6 ft

Mature Width 4-6 ft

Growing Zones 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

Special Features

Showy flowers
Low maintenance
Cold hardy
Reblooming

Shipping Info

Once your Penny Mac Hydrangea Shrub order is placed, we will ship your plant(s) within seven business days year round unless during the checkout process you request otherwise in the space provided to do so.

Perfect Plants’ shipping specialists carefully package your plants using a proven packaging method that ensures your plants arrive healthy, colorfully alive and ready to flourish. We’ve coined the term ‘upside down box test’ and we do just that; we carefully package so that regardless of the direction your box is handled, it will not harm your precious plant that’s inside.

upside down test

No shipping process is without a problem from time to time. On rare occasions some plants may experience some of the following during their transit: drooping, minor leaf-loss and/or minimal yellowing/discoloration, minor limb damage, etc. These instances are quite rare, but can happen when shipping plants in boxes.

Plants normally recover within a few weeks after planting. If a damaged box has injured your plant on the inside, please notify us within 5 days of receiving you package(s) by emailing us a photograph of the damage.

We always do our very best to ensure that your plants are packed and shipped in the safest, gentlest and most effective way possible.

Will my plants and trees look like the photographs?

Absolutely! Unlike other online nurseries, our photos are of actual plants and trees we’ve grown here, on our family operated nursery.

our story Lloyd nursery Growing our own plants and trees helps to ensure we ship you the best quality plants that are free of pests and diseases.

Your plants and trees may however not ship with flowers on them, like the photographs. This all depends on the time of year you buy your plant or tree. Crape Myrtle trees, for example, only bloom during the summer months, so if you purchase one during the spring or fall, they would ship without flowers. Once planted, your plants will grow and thrive giving you flowers for many years to come!

Pot Sizes

Pot sizes (commonly referred to in gallons) are shipped in the same size nursery trade pots which may vary in actual volume. Some plants may have been at the approximate pot size listed, but require excess dirt to be removed so that you will not be paying any additional shipping costs. This doesn’t happen very often though.

Shipping Fees

Our shipping charges are based on the value of your order. Please use the chart below to see what your shipping charge will be.

shipping matrix 2-16

Care

PENNY MAC HYDRANGEA CARE:

The Penny Mac Hydrangea prefers partial sun, partial shade. It is less tolerant of intense sun in the Southern climates however and prefers afternoon shade. They prefer well drained, consistently moist but not soggy soil. Little pruning is required, but dead branches or spent blooms should be removed. Blooms develop on new growth so spent blooms should be cut back to closest live wood.

The Penny Mac Hydrangea bloom color will vary with the soil type and can be manipulated. More acidic soils will produce blue blooms. Adding aluminum sulfate, pine needles or coffee grounds will encourage blue blooms. Less acidic or more alkaline soils will produce pink blooms. Adding lime, wood ashes or a fertilizer rich in phosphorous will encourage pink blooms.

PLANTING INSTRUCTIONS:

Dig a hole approximately twice as wide as your new plant’s root ball and deep enough so that the top of the root ball is equal with the ground level.

Loosen the root ball using a small garden spade or by hand. Breaking smaller outer roots can encourage growth into the new soil, but take care to not damage large primary roots.

Place the plant in the hole and ensure that it is situated evenly upright. Use the excavated soil to fill in around the root ball, using your foot to pack it in firmly. Thoroughly soak with a hose as you fill in the dirt. Take great care to not leave any gaps or air spaces around the root ball as this could kill the plant.

A 2-4 inch layer of mulch is strongly recommended to help retain moisture and discourage weed growth. Apply mulch over the entire planting area but keep away from the stems or trunk by a few inches. Ensure that the plant and surrounding soil is completely soaked with water.

To ensure the proper nutrients are available for the life of your Penny Mac Hydrangea, our proprietary Perfect Plants Special Blend Soil and a once yearly application of Nutricote Total 360 Fertilizer are great considerations for your new plants!

7 reviews for Penny Mac Hydrangea Shrub

4.3

Rated 4.29 out of 5

Based on 7 reviews

5 star		71%
4 star		14%
3 star		0%
2 star		0%
1 star		14%

Rated 5 out of 5

Nancy joy – April 23, 2019

I couldn’t be happier! The plants came very swiftly they were strong and they bloomed very soon. They are beautiful and I’m thinking of getting some more. I want to for addition in my garden.

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- Perfect Plants (store manager) – April 25, 2019
  
  Nancy, we are so happy you are pleased with your new penny mac hydrangeas! Keep those blooms hydrated for continuous color this summer :)
Rated 5 out of 5

Sarah M. (verified owner) – May 20, 2020

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Beautiful Penny Mac Hydrangeas. Planted well and are thriving!

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- Perfect Plants (store manager) – June 2, 2020
  
  Thank you for your review on our Penny Mac hydrangea. We are so glad you love it!
Rated 5 out of 5

Anonymous (verified owner) – July 6, 2020

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Nice, healthy plant that is large and beautiful.

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- Perfect Plants (store manager) – July 7, 2020
  
  Thank you for reviewing our Penny Mac Hydrangea. Enjoy your new plant :)
Rated 4 out of 5

david n. (verified owner) – April 26, 2021

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Rated 5 out of 5

Mariella (verified owner) – May 13, 2021

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Beautiful hydrangea. Still too young and newly planted, but I am sure it will grow and continue to bloom year after year,,,!

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- Perfect Plants (store manager) – May 19, 2021
  
  Thank you for your 5 star review on our Penny Mac Hydrangea shrub. We hope they bloom for you very soon!
Rated 5 out of 5

Robert A. (verified owner) – June 6, 2021

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Rated 1 out of 5

Susan M. (verified owner) – August 2, 2021

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My hydrangea plant arrived with a fungus of some sort. I emailed Perfect Plants and they have been quick to respond. I have removed the Infected leaves as instructed but it seems to be quickly spreading . I have tried to treat it but no luck. They said they were replacing on the 23rd but no replacement as of Aug 2nd tracking numbers do not show a shipment was picked up. Perfect plant not so perfect and now my roses that it’s planted close to have a fungus…

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