Make your cuts at the right time to enjoy the most flowers from these hard-working shrubs.
(For example, you wouldnt prune a Snowball hydrangea and Endless Summer hydrangea at the same time.)
Another good reason to prune is to stimulate regrowth and increase flowering.
Credit: Kritsada Panichgul
You also want to keep an eye out for leaf spot diseaseprune off infected leaves and destroy them.
Heres what you oughta know about how to prune hydrangeas for the best results.
Don’t forget to put your cut hydrangeas in water immediately.
Bigleaf Hydrangeas
The popular bigleaf hydrangea is distinguished by itschanging flower colors.
When planted in acidic soil, its flowers are blue.
In alkaline soil, itsflowers are pink.
For optimal blooms, this green-stemmed hydrangea should bepruned soon after the flowers have fadedin late summer.
Then, the shrub will have a chance to produce new growth where next years flower buds will form.
Oakleaf hydrangeas also bloom on old wood and should be pruned in summer after the flowers fade.
When trimming back stems, make your cuts just above a set of leaves with sharp, clean pruners.
Never use baking soda to clean gardening tools; it can disrupt the soil.
Even so, pruning right after bloom maximizes future flowering.
Remove the cylinder in the spring when the buds begin to grow.
Shrubs that flower on new wood generally start blossoming later than old wood bloomers.
Your objective determineshow you prunepanicle hydrangeas.
How to properly prune hydrangeas.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Extension.
University of Maryland Extension.
University of New Hampshire Extension.
