These colorful hydrangeas were spotted on a sunny June afternoon in Oslo, Norway, by our intrepid photographer.

No, they’re not native to that part of the world. Wikipedia says that hydrangea is a genus of about 70 to 75 species of flowering plants native to southern and eastern Asia (China, Japan, Korea, the Himalayas, and Indonesia) and North and South America. By far the greatest species diversity is in eastern Asia.

In most species the flowers are white, but in some species (notably H. macrophylla), can be blue, red, pink, light purple, or dark purple. It would seem, therefore, that these beauties are Hydrangea macrophylla — by far the most widely grown with over 600 named cultivars.

Have you tried growing hydrangeas in your backyard garden?

(Photo © Susan McKee)