Hydrangeas hold a subtle but rich place in Japanese culture. While not as iconic as cherry blossoms or chrysanthemums, they are deeply associated with the mood of early summer, when the rainy season arrives and the landscape turns lush, damp and reflective.
But hydrangeas are also common in the UK and are in full bloom at this time of year, late summer to early autumn. As August turns slowly into September, I can see similarities in the symbolism of hydrangeas in rainy-season Japan to how we might feel here as the season changes.
A flower of reflection and transformation
In Japan, hydrangeas are known as ajisai (紫陽花) and they hold a unique place in the cultural imagination. Blooming during tsuyu, the rainy season, they thrive in misty temple gardens and on shaded hillsides.
People visit famous viewing spots like Meigetsuin or Hasedera in Kamakura and Yoshimine-dera in Kyoto, to admire their beauty at its peak — walking slowly beneath umbrellas, surrounded by clusters of petals made luminous by rain.
But hydrangeas are more than just a seasonal attraction. Their range of colours, from blue to pink to purple, depends on the acidity of the soil they are planted in. Replanting a shrub from one place to another can cause blue to turn pink or pink to become mauve.
This changeability has come to symbolise emotional depth and complexity. In Japanese culture, they’re often associated with apology, gratitude or feelings that can’t easily be expressed in words.
In the UK, hydrangeas are at their peak in late summer going into early autumn and many people find this is also a time for reflection. The changing season makes us feel a little sad for the summer which is now coming to an end but can also help us look forward to autumnal treasures.
The cooler temperatures, especially in the evenings, and shorter days are already starting to become apparent and maybe your thoughts start to turn to digging out some warmer clothes, such as a cardie or jacket that hasn’t had much use over the summer. And, although it might mean ‘back to school’ for some, who can say that they’re not looking forward just a little to making the house feel cosy and curling up under a blanket with a book or a hot drink.
The large blousy blooms of the hydrangea, in dusky pinks and blues, are emblematic of this transitional part of the year in Britain and share some of the significance that they do in Japanese culture.
Ajisai in Japanese art and design
Because of their cultural significance, hydrangea flowers and foliage appear in both traditional Japanese aesthetics and modern design.
Ukiyo-e woodblock prints sometimes include hydrangeas as subtle background elements, especially in scenes of June rain or temple visits. They can also be seen in kimono or yukata patterns and on accessories such as fans and hair decorations, particularly for summer wear.
In everyday designs, ajisai are popular motifs on Japanese washi paper and stationery, summer-themed furoshiki cloths, ceramics and other homeware.
Wagashi, traditional Japanese sweets, are also shaped into the soft, domed form of hydrangea flowers and are often made with translucent kanten jelly or sweet bean paste.
Japanese hydrangea designs are often soft, layered and watery in tone, perfect for capturing the subtle beauty of early summer rains.
In Britain, hydrangeas are a familiar presence in cottage gardens where their rounded shapes, muted colours and faded edges suit the nostalgic dreamlike quality of late summer.
As in Japan, hydrangea flowers are featured in textile prints, wallpapers and other decorative homeware while the fabulous blooms are often used for stunning flower arrangements, especially in elegant white and pale green.
Hydrangea colours and their meanings
In Japan, as in other cultures, colours are associated with different emotions and meanings. The colours of hydrangea flowers can also be interpreted in this way.
Blues can symbolise apology, gratitude and heartfelt emotion while pinks are linked with warmth, love and joy.
Purple is often seen as symbolising mystery or deep emotions while white stands for purity and grace.
Common varieties of hydrangea
It’s fairly common to see hydrangeas in parks, gardens and tucked away in the corners of towns and villages alike, and I’m sure you will have seen some of these different varieties around.
Bigleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla)
These are the most familiar type, often seen in both Japanese and British gardens. There are two main forms: Mopheads which have large, rounded clusters of flowers like pompoms and Lacecaps which have flatter heads with tiny flowers in the centre surrounded by larger more showy petals.
This variety comes with blue, pink, purple and sometimes deep red flowers and is well known for the way the flowers can change colour depending on the acidity of the soil.
If the soil is acidic, typically pH 5.2 to 5.5, you will see blue flowers and if the soil is more alkaline or neutral, around pH 6.0 to 6.2, the flowers are more likely to be pink. In between you will get all shades of mauves and purples or even a mixture.
Blue hydrangeas can be quite difficult to achieve in some areas but it is possible to maintain the colour by adding aluminium sulphate to acidify the soil they’re growing in.
Panicle hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata)
This variety has cone-shaped flower clusters rather than rounded pompoms. They tend to start out white or pale green, ageing to soft pinks as the season progresses.
Smooth hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens)
This type of hydrangea is known for their big, domed white blooms and are sometimes known as ‘snowball hydrangeas’. A famous variety is ‘Annabelle’ which has huge white flower heads that gradually fade to green as they age.
The colour of these flowers doesn’t depend on soil pH and are almost always white and pale green.
Oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)
Oakleaf hydrangeas are recognisable by their oak-shaped leaves which turn red and bronze in autumn.
Flowers open white, often taking on a blush of pink as they mature. The changing colour of the foliage in autumn adds extra seasonal interest.
Mountain hydrangea (Hydrangea serrata)
Mountain hydrangeas are native to Japan and Korea and are often planted in temple gardens. The flowers are smaller and more delicate than mopheads, with lacecap-style flowers.
Their colours also change with the pH of the soil but are generally more subtle than other varieties.
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A flower that blooms in the rain
As well as the soil in which they grow, the hydrangea’s sensitivity extends to the weather, too.
Hydrangeas in Japan are practically made for the rain. The water deepens their colours, softens their edges and gives them a dreamy, translucent glow, as if they were designed to be most beautiful in grey weather.
Here in the UK, we know a thing or two about rain, especially in late summer. The sky grows darker, the air shifts and we begin to see heavy showers and sudden storms, sometimes followed by late evening light.
And just like in Japan, hydrangeas seem to thrive in this atmosphere. They don’t wilt or fade, they soak it in and continue to bloom, softening the edges of the garden as the seasons start to turn.
Hydrangeas in the UK: At home with change
In British gardens, hydrangeas are as common in the city as they are in cottage gardens. They feel familiar and a little nostalgic.
They spill over fences, nestle into corners and lend a softness to even the most formal beds. Their colours are cooler here: washed-out blues, mauves and dusky pinks. And just like in Japan, they are a flower for transitional moments — they begin to bloom as summer peaks and stay with us as the season shifts towards autumn.
In the stormy weather of late summer, just like in Japanese temple gardens, they seem to glow just a little more.
My own hydrangea story: From blue to pink
Several years ago I bought a hydrangea plant for my own garden. I bought it because it was a beautiful dark blue-mauve colour and, along with other rounded shrubs already established, I hoped to recreate a little of that Japanese garden vibe.
I was aware that blue hydrangeas can change depending on the soil but figured that I could manage that.
Unfortunately, I’m not the best gardener and by the next year the flowers were dark pink! Every year I think ‘I’ll give it the correct feed and try to get back the original colour’. Of course, I never do but, you know what, it’s still beautiful and does surprisingly well in our somewhat dry garden!
We’ll be moving house soon and leaving this particular shrub behind. But I love hydrangea flowers and will definitely be looking for a new one to plant in our next garden.
A flower symbolising transformation
Can we learn something from a flower that responds to its surroundings and changes with its environment? In Japan, hydrangeas speak of complex feelings that may be difficult to express.
In the UK, they linger in our gardens as late summer turns to autumn and serve as a reflection on the turning of the season. Change is a part of life and the same kind of reflections can help us accept these changes and see beauty and positivity in what's to come.
