Beginner Gardening: Help with hydranga, 0 by bookreader451

bookreader451 wrote:
If you are growing big leaf hydrangea in warmer climates partial shade is essential. Morning sun is great but afternoon sun can be too much. Hydrangeas need a lot of water and will wilt in the afternoon if the day is too hot. They perk up again in the evening.

I leave 2 one gallon plastic bottles with drip holes in the bottom under my one hydrangea that seems to get too much sun. It really helps with the afternoon wilting.

If you're not sure if your soil is acid/neutral/alkaline see what color blooms you get and then adjust to what you desire. If you get purple or mixed blooms your soil is probably closer to neutral.

If you need to prune mopheads do so right after blooming or by August so they have time to set the buds for next season. If you prune in fall or spring you will lose all the blooms that year. When you deadhead in the fall or spring just remove the bloom and not much of the stem.

Even if you have Endless Summer of one of the others that bloom on new wood you will not get early blooms if you prune in fall or spring.

I envy those of you in warmer zones. I have to winter protect my mopheads to assure blooms.

This is a picture of Red Sensation in early June of this year.