Common hydrangeas still evoke memories of lazy summer days, verandas and grandmothers gardens, but today’s new varieties are on the cutting edge.

The big news is the remontant varieties – those that will bloom continuously throughout the summer.

Endless Summer, a mophead type that is probably the most widely planted remontant, is now in great supply at nurseries and home improvement warehouse stores. Also look for Penny Mac and Mini Penny, both reblooming mopheads.

Because remontants bloom on both old and new wood, they will flower even if a late frost nips the first buds of spring. Long flowering and frost resistance makes them a no-brainer for gardeners.

The same hybridizers who introduced Endless Summer are out with Blushing Bride, a gorgeous white mophead that ages to pink.

Merritt’s Supreme, a greenhouse hydrangea often given at Easter or Mother’s Day, produces mopheads that go from pink to purple as they mature.

Ayesha, a hydrangea with pale pink to mauve flowers with sepals cupped like spoons, has stolen my heart. My year-old plant bloomed well this spring producing some huge mopheads. Here's a picture of it.

For some reason, I'm having difficulty upgrading the calendar selections. I put in the information but it doesn't get posted on the site.
So here are two events for the rest of June:

June 28

Memphis Herb Society, 6 p.m. plant exchange in the herb garden at the Memphis Botanic. Members will swap plants and enjoy food from Fratelli's at the Garden.

Memphis Cactus and Succulent Society, 7 p.m., Memphis Botanic Garden. Heather Godwin presents a slide show from Big Bend National Park. Call 681-0700.

As a person who collects and disseminates information about gardening, I have a one-word review of the new Mid-South Garden Guide: Wow!

Dr. Carolyn Kittle, who wrote and edited the book published by the Memphis Garden Club, did a masterful job of presenting tons of succinctly written information and user-friendly-charts. She is pictured above with some of the local experts who contributed to the book.

Kittle, a remodeling contractor with a doctorate in analytical chemistry, loves details and fun facts" about plants and gardening.

The Mid-South Garden Guide, first published in 1954, was last revised in 1984. The last edition had no information on water gardens or tropicals and only a little on hostas. It also suggested lots of synthetic fixes for problems.

Kittle advocates natural remedies and fertilizers as well as beneficial insects and animals as the first-choices resources for gardeners.

She said: There have been many improvements in disease resistance in the plants themselves. I am just blown away by how everything in nature works together.

One of the charts spotlights plants that are tropical and hardy here in Zone 7 such as elephant ears, needle palm (which can survive -10 degrees), ginger lily, some non-invasive bamboos, calla lily, canna and hardy banana.