Hydrangea when do you cut back

Tip-pruning the branches as leaves emerge in spring can encourage multiple, smaller flower heads rather than fewer larger flower heads. Prune in early spring, just as leaves are beginning to show. Cut branches back by one-half to one-third, cutting just above a node. Next, remove any weak or spindly branches. For H. Hard pruning 12 to 18 inches from the ground or even all the way to the ground, will produce fewer, but larger, flower heads that may flop without propping.

Flower head size can be related to pruning. With more aggressive pruning, shoots will be more vigorous and flower heads will be larger and fewer. Less aggressive or tip pruning can result in smaller but more numerous flower heads. The best advice for hydrangeas is to consider their mature size. Locate them in an area they won't outgrow and require heavy pruning to keep them in bounds.

Hydrangeas do not require strict reqular pruning; simply keep them healthy by removing dead wood and they will grow and flower well. If the thought of trying to figure out if your hydrangea blooms on old wood or new wood or both! Bridgewater Greater Manchester. Environmentally friendly gardening. Plant health. Take part in our research. Meet the team. Shop plants rhsplants. Shopping with the RHS. RHS Christmas gifts. Help us achieve our goals Make a donation. Join the RHS today and support our charity Join now.

Save to My scrapbook. Hydrangea arborescens 'Annabelle'. Quick facts. Jump to Suitable for When to prune hydrangeas How to prune hydrangeas Problems. Suitable for The pruning methods explained below are for individual types and species of hydrangea. When to prune hydrangeas Most pruning is carried out in late winter or early spring. How to prune hydrangeas Dead-heading Dead blooms on mophead hydrangeas can, in mild areas, be removed just after flowering, but it is best to leave them on the plant over winter to provide some frost protection for the tender growth buds below.

Remove the dead flowerheads in early spring, cutting back the stem to the first strong, healthy pair of buds down from the faded bloom Lacecaps are hardier, and the faded flowerheads can be cut back after flowering to the second pair of leaves below the head in order to prevent seed developing, which saps energy from the plant Pruning established mopheads and lacecaps Cut out one or two of the oldest stems at the base to encourage the production of new, replacement growth that will be more floriferous Poor or neglected plants can be entirely renovated by cutting off all the stems at the base.

These will grow over the next few years and carry blooms in the future. If you have an overgrown plant, cut some of the stems right to the base. Hydrangea aspera, Hydrangea serrata and Hydrangea quercifolia are also lightly pruned in spring — just remove old flower heads and old, crossing or long stems and in a similar way to mopheads and lacecaps.

Pruning is not essential, but left unpruned the plant will get taller, with most of the flowers at the top. Prune to just above a pair of healthy buds on each stem. Cut back to the lowest healthy buds for big flowers or less hard for a natural look or a taller plant. Climbing hydrangeas such as Hydrangea anomola subsp. Low-maintenance creeping, hardy carpet Phlox is ideal for colourful, spring ground cover.

This charming hardy climber creates a canopy of glossy green foliage, which in summer is strewn with flat white panicles of flowers on long stems. A graceful small grass with bright green foliage in summer that morphs into spectacular shades of bronze in winter. Ideal for adding to mixed borders. Home Plants How to prune a hydrangea in spring.

How to prune hydrangeas in spring — removing an old hydrangea flowerhead above a growing new bud. How to prune hydrangeas in spring — pruning old hydrangea stems.