hydrangeas need help

We planted 2 hydrangeas 4 years ago. The first year they were beautiful, but the next year there were very few blooms and they were much smaller. Since then, no blooms at all. The plants started out the same size and were planted at the same time, but one is now about twice the size of the other. The plants will be eventually be covered with brown spots and the leaves curl under. We checked the PH level using a meter and it's registering about 7. They are on the west side of the house. We have tried everything we know to try. What are we doing wrong?

Leaf curling/spots can be caused by sunburn, fungal activity or lack of water (although usually with too little water, the leaves will for a few days first). The first two problems can be compounded by overhead watering so make sure there's not a sprinkler or anything getting the foliage wet. Maybe when it leafs out you could post a picture of the problem.

plantfreak-

Thanks for such a quick response. The hydrangeas are not underwatered and they are never watered from the top. There is no sprinkler, so any water they get from the top is rain. The first year, the afternoon sun didn't seem to bother them at all. They were gorgeous, but since then, they're pathetic. If the ph level is okay, is there something else we can add to the soil?

I don't know how hot your summers are, but I suspect they're warm enough that hydrangeas won't be happy if they're in an area that gets PM sun. AM sun is great, but you'll want them protected from sun during the hottest part of the day. If they're stressed from being in a little bit too sunny of a spot, then that can make them more susceptible to fungus and other problems (and if there are fungal spores in the soil, rain falling can splash them up onto the leaves just like overhead watering can).

I know in my garden, there are damper spots in the borders like one set of plants do well, next to them, the soil is drier, do you prune your plants, to get a good show of flowers from the Hydrangia's, you need to prune them back after the flower heads have turned brown, or if you want to save the dried flower heads for indoor decoration, then prune early spring or all the energy from the plants go into tall growth, after I prune mine in spring, I give them a food to boost the root system and encourages larger flowers, depending on the PH of your soil, you could end up changing the flower colour so ask at the garden center in your area for the right type of food, I use animal or chicken manure, the chicken manure is dried ready for use, if you remove a couple of leaves from the affected plants try looking through a magnifying glass to check for insects or mould etc, if none, then I would suggest your watering is wrong, it can happen from spot to spot within the same border, good luck. WeeNel.

Thanks to those who offered advice. I don't have a definitive answer to my problem yet, but I'm working on it. I appreciate the information from those who know a lot more than I do about this subject.