Lost cause?

My poor hydrangea has been wilting from heat for last month and recovering by morning... However, recovery has been less and less and this morning, it still looked like this...poor thing is no longer recovering over night. She gets 3-4 hours of morning sun and temps have ranged from 75-90 degrees.

Is this a lost cause? Do I need to move her to full shade? Pot her and move to shade? Keep her there and see what happens? Help, it pains me to see her like this...

Thanks!

Helen

Helen, since your hydrangea survived the last heat wave we had I'd say it's not a lost cause.

Considering the number of months we will have hot weather I'd consider moving it to an area with more shade. I'd also plant it in potting soil to improve the drainage.

When temperatures during the last heat wave were in the 100's at the beaches, I had to water my hydrangea every evening. I used a water bucket to make sure it was watered deeply instead of a water hose or automatic sprinklers.

Good luck!

Helen there is no picture to show the size or condition of the plant, However after the amount of worry and help / care you have given the plant then I agree you need to get something more to keep it alive.

Several things could help you get the plant through this stage of hot temps. It recovers at night so it is trying to cope naturally.

1st, you could build a shelter for the plant, use garden canes and a cloth sheet or netting purchased from the garden store, make a circle or a square that is slightly wider than the plant, then tie the netting or cloth onto the canes, this will keep the searing sun from blanching the foliage and helping to shade the root area, all the places where the heat / hot sun causes the most problems.
While doing this, you should fork GENTLEY, the soil around the roots to break up any hard crust formed there due to the heat / sun, Run the garden hose for a long time to absolutely soak the root area, make sure you scrape away a little soil to check the hose pipe is actually getting way down into the soil and NOT running off elsewhere.

2nd. dig the plant out (do this at the coolest time of day or night) fill a LARGE container with compost that has had plenty Humus added, horse manure is my first choice BUT good quality store bought or home made compost is a second choice, try loosen some of the soil free from the roots, and place the plant into the pot / container at the same depth it was in the garden, burying the plant too deep is not a good idea but don't put it into the new container shallow, make sure you fill the container to about 2 inches from the top, this empty space allows you to fill the pot up with water when you do water, the empty space at the top of the soil fills with water and it soaks slowly down to the roots, you may have to do this filling up with water several times for the one watering as you don't want the container soil to dry out (containers are difficult to get really wet again after they have been aloud to get too dry)
Lastly, remove the container into a more sheltered / shaded area where the strong sun wont get to the plant for hours on end BUT, it still needs a bit of sun or good light, Again you could make a shelter for the plant as described before, these shelters or shades are temporary and are easy removed IF the weather turns cooler.

3rd and last, idea is to find a really shaded area in the garden and move the plant, adapting the soil as given for the container, the added humus / compost / manure is going to allow air into the soil it feeds the plants, it helps hold onto moisture when you water or it rains, and when added to the garden soil it makes the soil easier to dig and a more open texture, this type of rejuvenated soil also helps make healthy plants and that means they can fight off any bug attack's, helps them fight any diseases known to attack the specific type of plants.

Hope this helps set you on the road to recovery for the plant while it is struggling to survive the intense heat you have in your area.
I think after a few years, the plants will learn to cope with the hot environment so long as we help them adjust to the new environment as mostly they are outwith their natural growing conditions, but we love to look at the plants to brighten our lives.
Kindest Regards.
WeeNel.

I would put up something for shade through the summer. It will have a very hard time adapting to being transplanted with summer just starting, unless it was just planted there.

Sorry! I thought I did upload the photo.. here she is. =(

Her compared to one that is fairing better.. slightly....

The brown and wilting leaves is typical of too hot and soil too dry. Each time it happens the roots are taking some damage, too, and eventually the plant might not have any reserve energy to come back.

Usually morning sun is fine for Hydrangea in your area. It can get hot there, but is not usually too hot for AM sun. Maybe they are also getting some reflected heat? That would be too much.

However, the way these plants are looking, they are not handling it.
Either follow the suggestions above about loosening the soil, and mulching, provide some temporary shade or else transplant them to a full shade setting.

Thank you, Diana. I appreciate that you are in similar region and are familiar with my location. I noticed the plant perked back up last week when whether stayed cool for a few days in a row... But it has looked this glum for a few days now. I will give it a good watering in a.m. and provide all day shade this weekend. Hopefully won't be too late.

WeeNeel, I am taking your advice and potting the hydrangea and moving it to a shadier location straight away per your instructions. I think this May be the only chance to safe her as she is declining and not recovering well at all. Thank you all for your help saving a plant life!

And we are in for a scorcher of a weekend! Stay cool.