Climbing hydrangea - best place to plant

mmsj496

Someone has given me a climbing hydrangea (anomala petiolaris Mirranda) in a pot. I know that this will need to be in the ground ideally, and also know that this can grow to a whopping 12m! I don't really have anywhere it can climb to that height though. Can it be kept under control against a much smaller trellis please?

Fairygirl

No, not really. It wants to be a big plant   
A north or east facing wall is the best site. A bit of shade shows them off best. I've seen them on fences, and it never looks right. I expect you could keep it restrained a bit, but it's the old story of right plant right place. You'd be constantly 'managing' it, and not really getting the best from it. 
That one seems slightly more restrained than the standard petiolaris, but even so, it still wants to be big.  
Others may have a different opinion though. 

luis_pr

I concur with fairygirl. The specimen that I saw in the northeastern states of the US when visiting MIL was very pretty in bloom but huge. That one was growing on a morning sun only location in someone's house and the variegation looked very nice (at least from the street). Like other variegated hydrangeas, Miranda in the northeastern states needs a bit more "proper" shade conditions to keep the leaves and blooms from scorching but it may do well where you live as you are further north and the sun is not as harsh there as it is down here. I have seen these CHs growing up trees, walls, a 2-story house fireplace, a tall light post and even "swallowing" a long rock fence. It uses suckers to climb walls and other structures. But consider large, long "living" structures for it to climb and spread. A cousin of CH, Rose Sensation (Schizophragma hydrangeoides) has green foliage, pink sepals and is not as tall, about 9-10 meters "only". Schizophragma is sometimes called False Hydrangea. It is not formally a hydrangea but a close relative in the plant world. If you do not have a location for it, thank your friend and give it to a neighbor/library/institution who can use it.

Loxley

You could grow it in a pot for a good few years, here are a couple of examples:





The plant can be hard pruned while dormant or you can cut back to a main framework of branches after flowering.