Moved my Hydrangea..Doh!

I really needed to move it so I dug it up from the ground last week. It was just past its best flowering and I was careful to keep as big a root ball as possible. I must say the root ball seemed small for the size of the plant. Ive put it in a HUGE pot with fresh no.3 and really soaked it and fed it and have kept it moist. Its not happy with me. The leaves are going yellow from the bottom up. What should I do? Shall I cut it right back and sacrifice what flowers are left, leave it alone to possibly recover but continue watering or have I killed it? I hang my head in shame

 

I'd have left it till the Autumn if at all possible, but I guess you had no choice by the sound of it.
Now you may as well leave it well alone other than keeping it watered.
The telling time will be next spring..if it shoots new buds then thumbs up, but it's probably out of your hands for now.

 

@Jymi riddler Thanks for advice. Its a mop head so flowers on new growth. When shall I cut it right down to control the size? I was thinking chopping it a bit now would remove the stree of it keeping itself alive. Its so heavily flowered. Will take a pic

 

You disturbed the roots by transplanting it and like Jymi said, you transplanted during the worst time of the summer so expect it to "pout" until it once again becomes established in the garden. I prefer to wait to move them until after the plants lose foliage and go dormant in the Fall (or during winter). Maintain the soil as evenly moist as you can and give it morning sun or dappled sun only. Watch out when fertilizing it now as fertilizers high in nitrogen can keep it in "grow mode" and you want it to start going dormant instead, about 3 months before your average date of first frost. If you have any early frost and it is still "awake", protect it or bring it into a garage.

The pot in the picture looks small so I hope this is a before picture (before you transplanted). I also would not prune now. Macrophyllas develop invisible flower buds along the ends of the stems by this time of the year. It is not possible to tell if you have them so just assume you do and do not cut unless you are ok with having no flower in 2021. The best time to prune is after they have bloomed but before the end of June or "thereabouts".

To find out when flower buds development happens, you can select a few hidden stems where you do not care if they do not produce flowers in 2021. Then individually and uniquely mark each stem somehow and prune them (half or 1/3 their size) at different times (one week apart). Then in Spring 2021 when you get blooms, see if these stems produced blooms or not. Just remember that the exact time will vary from year to year due to weather, sunlight, etc. My time for bud development appears to be in mid-July but I am in Texas so I would expect your time will be later as you are north of me and northern gardens develop flower buds later than mine here in the US. But if you are curious enough, try testing this way. Unfortunately, I learned this the hard way. I agreed that a friend of mine come in May and get blooms from my garden for a project she was going to do. But she did not cut blooms until mid-July. On my next year, I ended with zero blooms in the macrophyllas, serratas and oakleaf hydrangeas. Only Annabelle and the paniculatas produced blooms (they bloom on new wood). Oh well.... sigh... that was my big lesson that year! Hee, hee, hee.

Stay safe,
Luis

 

Thanks for all the advice. I guess I'll have to just wait and see.

 

I'd have to agree with Luis... that's a small pot for a plant that size especially in view of the fact that it came out of the ground.
Did you cram the rootball in under force or cut lots of it away! ..hmm, but then you say you've put it in John 3, so that's good. I wouldn't feed it till next Spring.
Having said that, the actual foliage looks quite reasonable, so just leave it for now and keep it watered.
(Unless there is little fresh compost around that rootball, in which case you might need a bigger pot)
Fingers crossed.

 

@Jymi riddler I cut off some of the roots but to tell the truth the root ball wasn't nearly as big as I expected it to be. I messed up on every level I do confess. I think my punishment should, and when I say should I really mean, will, be as follows. Ice Cream and Cider, not in the same bowl, in the garden this afternoon.
Ive decided to take the Hydrangea out of the too small pot and dig a hole under where it stands and put it in the ground. I think there is 'mud ground' under there that was left there when the slabs were laid for the very purpose of planting something. I will then keep it watered and leave it in peace. I just hope it doesnt rest in peace!!!!

 

I'm sure your Hydrangea will be fine, I have a few around the garden that don't always get the water they need, but ha, they survive.

 

Ice cream and cider... I'll be around your place at 3pm!
What's not to like :-)

 

Today's high here is 40C. Where did you say we can all find some ice cream today? Hee, hee, hee.

 

@luis_pr
you'd all be welcome but alas a bit far for you to get here. I actually had the best ice cream Ive ever had in my life near 'ish' Maryland and it was home made by an Amish family who came out every Friday evening to sell their wares. Never made it to Texas sadly. Second best was in Sarlat in the Dordogne France...............having said that I never met an ice cream I didnt like and the worst ice cream I ever had was fantastic

 

If you ever pass through Gloucestershire try 'Winstones' ice cream on Minchinhampton Common.
(a couple of miles from Princess Anne's house)
It's a family firm and famous in the area for it's quality products.

 

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