15 Red Hydrangea Varieties – World of Garden Plants (2024)

Red hydrangeas truly stand out, gaining popularity each year. Today, let’s dive into the top 15 red hydrangeas.

Summer Crush Hydrangea

Summer Crush stands out as one of the reddest bigleaf hydrangeas around. Its color might shift a bit with soil pH, but overall, it remains vibrant. The blooms are impressively large, creating a stunning contrast with the lush green leaves.

This compact variety doesn’t grow more than 3 feet in width or height, making it perfect for smaller spaces or container gardening. Summer Crush Hydrangea is low-maintenance, thriving in most soil types, except for very alkaline ones. It enjoys a bit of direct sunlight, but too much can be too much of a good thing.

Magical Ruby Red Hydrangea

Magical Ruby Red is a spectacular hydrangea variety, boasting large clusters of red flowers. It offers a stunning display from late spring through to late summer. This variety stands out for its abundance of buds that blossom into flowers, giving it an edge over other bigleaf hydrangeas.

With a mature size of 3 feet tall and 4 feet wide, its shape is rounded with a gentle flattening at the top. This compact size means it can fit into almost any space. Pruning isn’t a big concern; simply deadhead the spent blooms to encourage new flowers.

Cityline Paris Hydrangea

Cityline Paris is a standout hydrangea with its striking red blooms and large, rounded flower clusters that pop beautifully against its dark green leaves.

This hydrangea is notably compact, typically growing to a maximum of 2 feet in height and 3 feet across, making it ideal for tight spaces.

For optimal growth and flowering, Cityline Paris requires 4-6 hours of direct morning sunlight followed by ample afternoon shade. Too little light leads to sparse blooms, while too much can wash out the color.

Fire Light Hydrangea

Fire Light is a type of panicle hydrangea, known for its elongated red flower clusters that range in color from reddish-white to vivid red. It begins blooming in early summer and keeps up the stunning display until the end of the season.

Wee Bit Grumpy Hydrangea

Wee Bit Grumpy is a fantastic hydrangea known for its potential to flaunt bright red blooms in neutral to alkaline soil conditions. In acidic soils, however, expect the flowers to shift towards purple. To ensure those red hues, aim to maintain the soil pH above 6.5.

This variety is quite compact, growing to a height and width of 3 feet, with a naturally spherical shape that minimizes the need for pruning—simply snip off the spent blooms as needed.

With its excellent resistance to frost, Wee Bit Grumpy is versatile enough for cultivation across most of the United States. It fares well with morning sunlight but prefers shade during the hotter afternoon hours, and it doesn’t thrive in full shade.

Quick Fire Fab Hydrangea

Quick Fire Fab is a captivating hydrangea with panicles that can display red, white, or pink hues, offering a dynamic color show that evolves throughout the season when planted in your garden.

As an early bloomer among panicle hydrangeas, it kicks off its flowering season in early summer and continues to dazzle until summer’s end.

This variety is exceptionally hardy, suitable for zones 3-8, and requires no special winter protection or overwintering care, making it a low-maintenance choice for gardeners.

Tuff Stuff Red Hydrangea

Tuff Stuff Red, a member of the Hydrangea Serrata species, not only boasts stunning flowers but also features attractive toothed leaves. The blooms are a striking pink-red, occasionally with a yellow center. The flowers, appearing in clusters, don’t open all at once, creating a captivating display of both blooming and yet-to-bloom flowers.

This hydrangea is notably compact, with an average height and width of about 2 feet, making it perfect for growing in limited spaces, including small pots.

Its excellent hardiness and ability to thrive in full sun throughout the day set Tuff Stuff Red apart as a robust option among red hydrangeas. Additionally, this variety doesn’t require pruning, adding to its appeal.

Invincibelle Ruby Hydrangea

Red Sensation Hydrangea

Red Sensation truly earns its name with its eye-catching scarlet blooms. These striking flowers come together in large clusters, enhancing their visual impact.

Blooming on both old and new wood, this variety offers flexible pruning options, though it seldom requires cutting back due to its manageable size of no more than 4 feet in height and 5 feet in width.

Adaptable to the climates of most regions and undemanding when it comes to soil types, Red Sensation thrives with adequate moisture, necessitating extra watering during dry spells.

Everlasting Crimson Ruby Hydrangea

The Everlasting Crimson Ruby Hydrangea captivates with its deep crimson blooms, which are especially striking given its compact stature paired with substantial flower heads.

Flowering on both last year’s wood and the current year’s growth, this hydrangea boasts a high number of buds, ensuring a continuous display of blooms throughout the summer—a standout feature among hydrangeas.

Well-suited to zones 5-9, this variety reaches a modest height and width of up to 3 feet. Its robust stems effortlessly support the weight of the flowers, preventing them from drooping.

Diamond Rouge Hydrangea

The Diamond Rouge Hydrangea boasts impressively large panicles, reaching up to 15 inches in length! Initially white, these panicles beautifully transition through shades of pink before finally adopting a rich red hue.

With outstanding frost resistance, this hydrangea thrives in zones 3-8, unphased by late frosts due to its blooming on new wood, ensuring the flower buds remain undamaged.

Standing at 5 feet tall and 4 feet wide, Diamond Rouge fits perfectly into small garden spaces, though it may pose a challenge for container gardening.

Cherry Explosion Hydrangea

As its name implies, the Cherry Explosion Hydrangea features flowers with a vibrant red-cherry hue, creating a stunning contrast against its dark green leaves. This variety produces flowers generously on both old and new wood.

Suitable for zones 4-9, it requires winter mulching and protection from wind in the cooler zones 4 and 5. In these colder regions, it might only bloom on old wood, rather than both.

Cherry Explosion thrives in partial shade. While it can handle full sun in the northern states, it prefers afternoon shade in warmer zones 7-9 to protect it from the intense heat.

Invincibelle Garnetta Hydrangea

Invincibelle Garnetta showcases stunning flowers that blend pink and red hues together. The slightly flattened flower clusters harmonize beautifully with the green leaves.

Flowering on new wood from summer through to fall, this hydrangea offers added garden interest when its flower heads are left on during the winter.

With a growth size of 30 inches in both height and width, Invincibelle Garnetta is considered a dwarf hydrangea, eliminating the need for pruning to manage its size. Simply removing dead branches is all the maintenance required.

Fire and Ice Panicle Hydrangea

Fire and Ice is a captivating panicle hydrangea that starts the season with white blooms, which transition to pink and then to red. Its large, elongated inflorescences offer a stunning display for much of the season.

Thriving in zones 3-8 without the need for winter protection, this variety is also resilient to snowfall, thanks to its strong stems.

This medium-sized hydrangea reaches up to 6 feet in height and 4 feet in width, making it a standout choice for those not specifically seeking a dwarf variety.

Ruby Slippers Oakleaf Hydrangea

Ruby Slippers is an exquisite hydrangea with panicle-like clusters that bloom in shades from light pink to red, often displaying both colors simultaneously.

This variety tends to spread wider than it grows tall, reaching up to 5 feet across and 3 feet in height. It generally requires minimal to no pruning when placed thoughtfully. Its robust stems are capable of supporting the large clusters, even through heavy rainfall.