Hydrangea

Hydrangea (Hydrangea hortensis), a popular conservatory and summer garden plant, introduced from China by Sir Joseph Banks in 1790. It is a low-growing shrub belonging to the saxifrage order, with opposite, rather large, oval, toothed, acute, light-green, deciduous leaves, and large globular clusters of pink flowers. The addition of alum or iron to the soil gives them a lead-blue tint. Almost all the flowers are neuter, having five large petaloid sepals and no petals, stamens, or carpels. The plant is propagated by cuttings.