Hydrangeas make a gorgeous addition to any garden with their large stunning blooms in varying pastel shades of blue, purple and cream. While these beautiful plants are relatively hardy, if you want them to truly thrive, you need to be aware of what locations they grow best in. 

According to Megan McConnell, plant information director at Monrovia, who spoke to Real Simple, the best place for hydrangeas is somewhere with morning sun. She said: “Sun is needed to get an abundance of blooms. The best combination is direct morning sun, but shade from the afternoon sun. Dappled shade is preferable to deep shade." However if you are lucky enough to have a garden that experiences full sun but still want hydrangeas to thrive, it’s not impossible.

If you make sure they are planted somewhere with good irrigation, and regularly mulch the roots to cool them, hydrangeas can still blossom beautifully. 

As they can grow quite large at full maturity, it's important to make sure you plant your hydrangeas somewhere that they won’t be in competition with other flowers and foliage.

That’s not to say that hydrangeas can’t benefit from companion planting - in fact there are several plants that will work fabulously with hydrangeas.

One of these is ferns, according to  Lindsey Griffith from Great Garden Plants. Ferns will help keep the soil damp and cool for hydrangeas and also create a striking display.

Lindsey said:  “Create contrasting foliage shapes and textures by adding ferns between and in front of hydrangea hedges. Ferns can also add a tropical feel to your shady garden area.”

Another great companion plant is hostas. These shade loving shrubs have the same needs as hydrangeas and their big fleshy leaves will shade them to create dappled light conditions.

Lindsey said: “When gardeners think of popular shade plants, hosta is one of the first that comes to mind. Add near the base of your oakleaf or bigleaf hydrangeas to create contrasting glossy foliage.”