Most new growth hydrangeas put on buds in early summer to bloom in the following spring, summer and early fall seasons. In hot climates, hydrangeas may stop blooming in the heat of summer, but will rebloom in the fall.
Unlike other flowers, deadheading hydrangeas will not make them bloom again. Regular hydrangeas bloom once per season, while reblooming varieties produce a second set of flowers later in the season on new stems.
Whether or not hydrangeas bloom all summer depends on the variety and how it's grown. A hydrangea plant can certainly bloom all summer if it is a reblooming variety and the winter has been mild. In general, these plants are easy to grow and will provide you with a long season of colorful blooms.
When you deadhead hydrangeas, you aren't harming the plants at all. Removing the spent blooms triggers flowering shrubs to stop producing seeds and instead put their energy toward root and foliage development. This makes plants stronger and healthier, so by deadheading, you'll be doing your hydrangeas a favor.
If you don't prune hydrangeas then they can eventually resemble a tangled mass of woody stems, and the flowers will become smaller and less showy.
You'll find hydrangeas growing in hardiness Zones 3 to 7 as perennials. With flowers starting in spring and often last throughout summer into early fall, hydrangea flowers can be the foundation plant of your landscape.
Many customers ask why their hydrangeas aren't blooming. The primary reasons hydrangeas don't bloom are incorrect pruning, bud damage due to winter and/or early spring weather, location and too much fertilizer.
Most common hydrangeas prefer a partial sun location - ideally receiving sun in the morning hours and shade in the afternoon. The reblooming Endless Summer® Hydrangea series prefers part shade. These include BloomStruck®, Endless Summer®, Blushing Bride®, and Twist-n-Shout®.
Removing spent flowers will ensure your hydrangeas produce healthier, more bountiful blooms later on.
Hydrangeas are long-lived shrubs, sometimes living for up to 50 years if properly cared for. They enjoy morning sun but afternoon shade, and they need frequent watering during the growing season. Prune them in the fall after the blooms fade so they can grow on strong stems the following summer.
With proper timing and basic propagation techniques, you can grow new hydrangeas from simple stem cuttings. Just follow these steps to multiply your hydrangeas and their breathtaking blooms: Time hydrangea cuttings for optimal results. Gather your tools before you start.
They don't form a central taproot like rhododendrons and shrubs. Instead, they grow in a loose, spreading mass of fibers often referred to as a root ball. The vast majority of a Hydrangea's roots will stay within the top six inches or so of soil. However, they do tend to spread quite a bit in the horizontal direction.
As rapid growers—averaging about 2 feet of growth per year—larger varieties of hydrangeas can reach up to 15 feet tall. Applicable in growing zones 3 to 9, hydrangeas are a low maintenance plant that will return year after year with proper care.
Miracle-Gro Performance Organics Blooms Nutrition
This is an all-purpose blossom booster that's suitable for use on a wide variety of perennial and annual blooming plants, including hydrangeas.
Coffee grounds add extra acidity to the soil around hydrangeas. On a chemical level, this increased acidity makes it easier for the plant to absorb naturally occurring aluminum in the dirt. The effect is pretty blue clusters of flowers.
Let these plants grow a season or two before doing any serious "hard" pruning. Once the shrub is established and has a couple of growing seasons under its belt, prune these hydrangeas in the spring down to the ground, or not at all if you want a larger shrub. Flower buds will grow on this season's growth or new wood.
Water your hydrangeas in the morning before the heat of the sun is strong enough to quickly evaporate soil moisture. Try to avoid watering at night, which can encourage mold and mildew as the moisture sits through the cool night. Water your hydrangeas through the growing season as well as in late fall.
If a hydrangea does not bloom, it could be that it is not suitable for your hardiness zone. While the root system might survive winter, if the variety produced buds on last years stems, the buds are killed by extreme cold, and thus, no blooms the following year.
Hydrangeas need more water than most garden plants and will begin to wilt quickly without it. To ensure that Hydrangeas thrive, water deeply two to three times a week in the summer. Be sure to water in the morning or evening so that water does not evaporate as quickly as it would during the heat of the day.
If you object to their appearance as they turn brown, by all means clip them off. Some people cut them while they're still colorful and use them for bouquets indoors. Others snip them off and toss them in the compost, while some gardeners and homeowners prefer to let them drop naturally over the winter.
To rejuvenate the hydrangea, remove up to 1/3 of the older living stems down to the ground each summer. This will revitalize the plant. If necessary to control the size of the plant, cut back before late July to allow for buds to develop. Usually the plant will return immediately to its former size.