Hydrangea arb. Magical® Dark Pink ‘Bokodapi’

Description

Everything you love about Hydrangea Annabelle — reimagined in a bold, eye-catching pink. Hydrangea arborescens Magical® Dark Pink produces the same large, rounded flower heads that make Annabelle so beloved, but in a rich, vibrant pink that brings real warmth and drama to the summer border. Flowering from June right through to autumn, with dark green foliage that reveals a soft, silvery underside in the breeze, this is a compact, hardworking shrub that delivers season after season with very little asked in return.

All the charm of a classic — in a colour that stops you in your tracks.

Quick Facts
Botanical name: Hydrangea arborescens Magical® Dark Pink ‘Bokodapi’
Common name: Smooth Hydrangea Magical Dark Pink
Plant type: Hardy deciduous shrub
Mature size: 1.2–1.5m H x 1.2–1.5m W
Flowering: June to autumn
Flower colour: Bright pink
Foliage: Dark green with silver underside
Position: Full sun to part shade
Soil: Moist, well-drained
Hardiness: Fully hardy

Why we love it
– Striking bright pink flower heads in the same generous, rounded form as Hydrangea Annabelle
– Long flowering season from June through summer and well into autumn
– Dark green foliage with a beautiful silver underside — as attractive as the flowers themselves
– Flowers on new wood — cut back in winter or spring for the best display the following year
– Compact habit at 1.2–1.5m — well suited to smaller gardens and mixed borders
– Fully hardy across Ireland and the UK

Best for
– Mixed shrub and herbaceous borders
– Smaller gardens where a compact habit matters
– Bold summer colour in partially shaded spots
– Cutting gardens and dried flower arrangements
– Planting alongside white or purple flowering companions for contrast
– Replacing or complementing Hydrangea Annabelle with a colour contrast

How to care
– Watering: Keep well watered through the first season; during prolonged dry spells thereafter
– Feeding: Apply a spring mulch of compost or well-rotted manure before new growth emerges
– Pruning: Cut back to approximately one third of the plant’s height in late winter or early spring while dormant — this keeps the shape tidy, encourages strong new growth, and produces impressively large flower heads
– Position: Flowers most freely with some sun, but performs well in part shade

What makes this product special
The Magical® series takes the tried-and-trusted qualities of Hydrangea arborescens and pushes them further — and Dark Pink does exactly that. The flower heads are large and long-lasting, the pink is genuinely vivid rather than washed out, and that silvery leaf underside adds a quiet textural interest that you notice more and more as the season progresses. Because it flowers on new wood, you never have to worry about protecting old stems through winter — cut it back, let it regenerate, and it rewards you with some of its best growth yet.

Caragh’s Garden Notebook
If you already have Annabelle in the garden and you love it, Dark Pink is the natural companion — same reliable habit, same generous flower heads, completely different mood. The pink works beautifully alongside white flowering neighbours — Annabelle itself, white astrantias, or silvery-leaved plants — and equally well against dark foliage or deep purple flowering companions. Cut it back to about a third in late winter, give it a generous mulch in spring, and it will come back stronger each year. The silver underside of the leaves is one of those details that catches the light on a breezy summer afternoon and reminds you why you planted it.