how to prune and care for a hydrangea hydrangeas in containers · hydrangeas don’t need a lot of...

HowtoPruneandCareforaHydrangeaFirstofall,youdon’thavetopruneifyoudon’twantto!Justcleanoutdeadwood,andtrimbackdeadflowerstothefirstlivebuds.Astherearemanytypesofhydrangeas,pruningandcareofhydrangeasmaydifferslightlywitheach.• Themostcommontypesofhydrangeaare

theMopheadsandLacecaps(H.macrophylla–bigleaf).Thesearethevarietieswithlarge,globe-shapedflowersthatmanyofusrememberaskids.Prunetheseinlatesummer,rightaftertheyfinishblooming.Thinout¼ofthestems,andsnipbackthebranchestojustabovelivebuds.

• TheOakleafhydrangea(H.quercifolia)isanothercommonlygrownvariety.Withitsuniquefallcolorandoakleaf-shapedfoliage,thisvarietyusuallyprovidesyear-roundinterest.Toleratesdrierconditions.Oakleafisbestprunedinlatewinter/earlyspring.

• Panicle(H.paniculata),orPeeGee,exhibitswhite,coneshapedflowersinsummer.Prunetoremovespentbloomsandthinorcutbacktheplantinlatewinter/earlyspring.

• H.arborescensSmoothhydrangea,(Annabelle),canbepruned(totheground)eachwinterorearlyspringaswell.

• Thehydrangeavineorclimbinghydrangea(H.anomala)doesn’tusuallyrequirepruningbutmaybedoneinordertokeepthenewshootsundercontrol.

Hydrangeasdonotlikeextremelyhotconditions,soplanttheminanareawithafternoonshade.Theyaren’tfussy,buttheypreferrich,moistsoilthatdrainseasily.Theyenjoydeepwateringatleastonceaweek,especiallyindryweather.Compostpriortoplantingishelpful,asisalayerofmulch.Organicfertilizerorcompostonceortwiceayearinspringandearlysummerisappreciatedtoo.

HydrangeasinContainersChoosealargecontainer(atleast18to20inchesindiameter)foryourhydrangea.Ifyourcontainerdoesn’thaveholesfordrainage,drillsomeintothebottom.Waterthatstandsaroundtherootscancauserotting.Tip–putalayerofStyrofoampeanuts,orgravelatthebottomfordrainage.Whileyoudon’thavetousedwarfhydrangeasinpots,youmaywanttoifyourspaceislimited.Hydrangeasdon’tjustgettall;theyalsogetbushy.Otherwise,planondoingsomepruningasyourplantsgrow.Caution:whileyou’redoingyourresearch,checktoseeifyourvarietyflowersonoldornewwood.Ifyoupruneatthewrongtimeofyear,you’llloosenextyear’sflowers.Useagoodqualitypottingsoilwithorganicmatter,notordinarygardensoil.Plantthehydrangeaatthesamelevelthatitwasinitsoriginalpot(thatis,don’tplantitdeeperorhigherthanitwasalreadygrowing).Leavesomeroombelowtherimofthepot,soyoucanwater.Gentlyfirmthesoilaroundtherootstoeliminateairpockets.Whenthetopinchorsoofthepottingmixfeelsdry,wateryourhydrangeathoroughly.Althoughit’sbettertounderwaterthanoverwater,hydrangeaswillsignalyoubywiltingwhentheyneedadrink.Thatcanstressthem,socheckthemeverydayorso.Afteralittlewhile,you’llgetafeelforhowoftentowater.Youmayneedtostepupyourwateringinperiodsofdroughtorhightemperatures.Hydrangeasdon’tneedalotoffertilizer,butyoucanfeedyourplantsonceortwiceayearwithanorganicbalancedfertilizer,orcompost.Don’tfertilizeafterJulyorAugust;feedinglaterencouragestender,newgrowth,justwhenhydrangeasneedtostartgoingdormantforthewinter.

HYDRANGEAS

With immense flower heads, hydrangeas have an old-

fashioned charm that is hard to resist. Colors are beautiful, with clear blues, vibrant pinks, frosty whites, lavender,

and rose. Easy to grow, these are a summer staple in our area, a must in

any partly shaded area.

InlandBaysGardenCenterGardeningtomakeadifference

38320MuddyNeckRoadFrankford,DE19945

302-539-1839

MOPHEADHYDRANGEAS(prunerightafterblooming)• CityLineMars–1–3’tall.Asmallplantwithshowymagentaandwhitesummerflowers.Longlastingflowers.Mildewresistant.SoilpHaffectsbloomcolor.Salt

Tolerant.• MariesiiVariegata-'Mariesii'ispartofthelacecapgroup(flattenedflowerclustersconsistingprimarilyofsmallfertileflorets,withafewscattered,showy,sterile

onesoftenformingamarginalring).Itisadeciduousshrubwitharoundedhabit,whichtypicallygrows3-4'tall.• NikkoBlue-'NikkoBlue'haslargeflowersarrangedinglobularor"mophead"-likegroups.Itisadeciduousshrubwitharoundedhabit,whichtypicallygrows4-6'

tall.Featuresclustersofpinkorbluefloretsinbig,rounded,4-5"mops,whichbloominJune(oftenearlierthanothervarieties)foruptotwomonths.Large,lustrous,mediumgreenfoliage.

PEEGEEGROUP(prunelatewinter)• Limelight-Excellent,compactcultivarthattypicallygrowsto6-8’tallandaswide.Itproduceslarge,dense,upright,cone-shaped(to8”across)flowersthat

changecolorontheshrubastheymature.Flowersemergecreamywhite,maturetochartreuse-limeandeventuallyacquirepink-darkening-to-rosetonesbeforefinallyfadingtobeige.Astheflowershowfadesinfall,darkgreenleaves(to4”long)turnattractiveshadesofred.Flowersmaybecutforfresharrangementsorfordrying,ormaybeleftontheplantwheretheywilllastwellintowinter.Canbeprunedintoasmalltree.

• LittleLime-Compactcultivarthattypicallygrowsinanuprightroundedmoundto3-5'tallandaswide.It’sparticularlynotedforitslargemopheadtypeflowersto5"tallby4"wide,emergingsoftlightgreenbutmaturingtopinkandburgundyinfall.Compact,upright-moundedshape,freebranchinghabitandstrongstemsholdthepaniclesuprightwithnodrooping.FlowerstypicallybloomfromJulythroughSeptember.Darkgreenleaves(to21/2”long)areattractiveduringthegrowingseason,butproducegenerallyundistinguishedfallcolor.Flowersmaybecutforfresharrangementsorfordrying,ormaybeleftontheplantwheretheyoftenpersistintowinter.

• PinkyWinky-Adaptable,butprefersmoist,rich,loamysoil.SoilpHdoesnotaffectbloomcolor.Prunebacklatewinter/earlyspring.Applyfertilizerinspring.Two-tonedpinkandwhiteflowers.5’–6’talleventually.

• FireLight-Bloomsemergecreamy-whiteandagetoavividredforlotsofsummercolor.Itmakesagreatcutflower,freshordried.5’–6’tall.OAKLEAFGROUP(NATIVE,prunelatewinter)

• Munchkin-adwarf,compactshrubwithdarkgreenfoliagethatturnsmahoganyredinfall.Itswhite,6.5in.inflorescencesarehelduprightabovethefoliageandgraduallyturnpinkastheyage.‘Munchkin’grows3to4.5ft.tallandwide.

• RubySlippers-compactform3-4'tallandto3-5'wide,andknownforitscompactsize,largeuprightflowerpanicles,rubyredmatureflowers,mahoganyredfallfoliagecolorandexfoliatingbark.Upright,elongated,conicalflowerpanicles(to9"long)ofshowy,flowersbeginbloominlatespring.Flowersemergewhite,butquicklyturnpinkbeforefinallymaturingtorubyred.Distinctive,deeplylobed,somewhatcoarse,deepgreen,oak-likeleaves(to5”long)turnattractiveshadesofmahogany-redinautumn.Maturestemsexfoliatetorevealarichbrowninnerbark,whichisattractiveinwinter.

SMOOTHHYDRANGEAS(NATIVE,prunelatewinter,canbecuttothegroundtocontrolsize)• Annabelle-Deciduousshrubwitharoundedhabit,whichtypicallygrows3-5'tall.Clustersofwhiteflowersappearinhuge,symmetrical,roundedheads,which

typicallygrow8-12"across.BloomsinJuneforuptotwomonths,sometimeswithasmallrepeatbloominthefall(cuttingoffdeadflowerswillencouragethis).Darkgreenleaves(3-8"long).

REBLOOMINGGROUP(canbeprunedanytime)• EndlessSummer-Hydrangeamacrophyllaperennialshrubsthathavetheuniqueabilitytore-bloomthroughoutthespringandsummermonths,givingmorecolor

andvisualappealtoyourgardenforalongerperiodoftime.Bloomsonbotholdandnewgrowth.Knowntobloom10to12weekslongerthanaverageHydrangeamacrophyllaplants.

DRYINGHYDRANGEAFLOWERSHarvesttheheadswhentheflowershavematuredanddevelopedapaperyconsistency.Removeleavesfromstems,andhangupsidedowninawarm,dry,dark,airyroom.Whencompletelydry(usuallyacoupleofweeks),storeinadrylocationoutofdirectsunlight.Toenhanceflowercolor,spritzdryflowerswithdilutedRitdye.