Our giant hydrangea is maybe 20% of it's former size post cutting, but the sticks were really dead -- almost crumbling. There's growth at the base, but I'm so sad that our glorious bush has been reduced to a little shrub.

Anonymous wrote:The lawn service came for a late spring clean -- the hydrangeas are 1/3 their former size.

Mine are looking very healthy. They grow like crazy in the summer if you give them some fertilizer and water.

Here goes! Going to trim this weekend.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I trimmed back most of the bare sticks last week. Most were dead. This will be a growing year for the hydrangeas.

+1

Mine had lots of dry, dead buds on the old wood. Sad.

Same here. And they were so glorious last year!

Anonymous wrote:Slightly off topic, but I've got a climbing hydrangea and am wondering when it will bloom. I planted it last year, and it already has significant growth this year. Lush greenery, but no blooms yet. Any advice- do I just need to wait? TIA

You may get a few blooms (2-5, perhaps) in the first few years, but then it will take off. This is typical of climbing hydrangeas. They take a while to really get established before they'll bloom. I think ours took at least five years. We finally got a lot of blooms in years 7 or 8. You must be patient, but they are spectacular so worth the wait!

my established hydrangeas look the same - green leaves at the base and the rest is just dead sticks. i will cut down the sticks as suggested, but does that mean that this season the bushes will be very small and with no flowers? so sad!

Anonymous wrote:

Slightly off topic, but I've got a climbing hydrangea and am wondering when it will bloom. I planted it last year, and it already has significant growth this year. Lush greenery, but no blooms yet. Any advice- do I just need to wait

Sometimes it take a little longer than a year to get blooms. Or, maybe it's just mine.

Our is several years old (at least 10), and we have tons of greenery this year but the blooms aren't very impressive.

Slightly off topic, but I've got a climbing hydrangea and am wondering when it will bloom. I planted it last year, and it already has significant growth this year. Lush greenery, but no blooms yet. Any advice- do I just need to wait

Sometimes it take a little longer than a year to get blooms. Or, maybe it's just mine.

half of mine are the "Grow on new wood" types. Half the "grow on old wood" types. Both are not doing well. Hostas are FANTASTIC though and roses are running riot.

The lawn service came for a late spring clean -- the hydrangeas are 1/3 their former size.

Slightly off topic, but I've got a climbing hydrangea and am wondering when it will bloom. I planted it last year, and it already has significant growth this year. Lush greenery, but no blooms yet. Any advice- do I just need to wait? TIA

I just came in from trimming all the old wood off of my 8 year old endless summer hydrangea... It was painful and reduced my usual show pieces from 5 foot beauties to tiny nothings. It had just begun to set new buds on the old wood when we had a really hard frost back in April. Agree with PP that this will be a growing year. You should remove any old wood without leaves at this point so the plant puts all the energy into the new leaves/branches at the base of the plant.

Anonymous wrote:Is it too late to plant hydrangea?

No. Just be sure to water them well and frequently, especially after you plant them and during heat waves.

Is it too late to plant hydrangea?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I trimmed back most of the bare sticks last week. Most were dead. This will be a growing year for the hydrangeas.

I did the same I checked the sticks and they were all dead. No buds from last year. Just new growth at the base.

+1 and one of my 3 was reduced to a mere one live area smaller than a bagel. Sigh. 7 years in and now the plants are smaller than when I put them in.