Hydrangea hang up

Hi Ivory,

It is exactly the payback I want in gardening-that something I do can make a difference. It is the ultimate vindication as to why I spend so much time out in my garden.

This particular plant is at its most beautiful when the nightime has just fallen and everything else is just a grey/black blur. These little flowers standing there and shining out when nothing else can.

They can be as complicated as they like for me, they are worth it. 100 times over (Still don`t beat peonies for me however, they just kick a88).

 

"Just as good without pruning" clarification.

When I mean that hyds can be as good without pruning (except removing old flowers and dead wood, but I call that cleaning rather than pruning) I mean that they can be healthy and blooming anyway. But they bloom different with pruning. Less flowers but bigger, is the general result. It is a matter of choice really. Sometimes in a garden Hydrangeas left to themselves can look better, like natural chrisantemums look better in a garden than disbudded plants with a few flowers the size of a dinner plate. These look better in a show than in a border.
With hydrangeas I prefer I prefer to stay in the middle between these extremes.

With plants that bloom on old wood the wrong pruning can often prevent blooming entirely. In that case I think if you are not sure of how to prune, it´s better not to prune at all. But hyds are not complicated, once you get the hang of them they are really the easiest plants ever, so do not despair Ellie. Next spring I will post pruning photos.

 

Thanks Ivory

 

I prefer to do renovation pruning in the spring, I find i get farr better results even when taking a risk and removing a substantial portion of old wood eg 2/3rds.