topic Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming in Garden

hydrangea plants.....trimming

Mom2Dogs — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 00:30:12 GMT

I have asked in the past about when to trim and have been told late winter, early spring but I am wondering if I can trim right after the blooms fade....I have two different styles of plants, strawberry hydragena as well as the old style traditional plant....waiting until early spring to trim is a little difficult as sometimes spring can come late and then I am afraid I will be cutting off the blooms....what do you think?....I would prefer to take care of the trimming after labor day.

Thanks

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

luvmybeetle — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 00:38:02 GMT

I usually trim mine back in September after blooming is over. They come back very full the next Summer. I would be interested to learn if that is correct or not.

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

Mom2Dogs — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 00:44:45 GMT

@luvmybeetle....I really, really, need to trim the strawbery hydrangea...I have two -close together, they are huge. I had no idea they would grow so large or I never would have bought two....the nursery knew where I was planting them...I showed photos of where I was going to plant.....they never said a word about possibly being to big.

If I don't trim and we get a heavy snow, I think there could be serious damage to the plants.

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

fthunt — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 01:15:39 GMT

I had two "H" plants - the weak one didn't make it through the first winter. I read on Google to cut back in fall - and some said in the spring. Like you.......snow load - average in NE 160 inches - I cut the darn thing back in the fall. There was still some green (leaves) showing when I kissed it ............bye until Spring. It's healthy again this year; and getting taller - small rose bush size. I say...CUT IT BACK IN THE FALL - and don't worry.

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

BirkiLady — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 01:33:09 GMT

@Mom2Dogs You need to know exactly what types of hydrangeas you have. The old one probably blooms on old wood.

If the strawberry is a Strawberry Vanilla, it probably will bloom on new wood. You need to check on Google and thoroughly research each of your plants. They will be treated differently.

Keep the trimming in mind EACH year for the individual plants. When to prune makes a big difference if you have blooms or not the following year!

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

Chicagosuburbangirl — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 01:41:10 GMT

My mother in law was a wonderful gardener.

I take her advice and take them down to about 10 inches from the ground in the fall.

They always come back more abundant than the year before.

The ornamental grasses and sedum are cut down also.

Usually close to Halloween is when I do this,

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

luvmybeetle — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 02:08:03 GMT

@Mom2Dogs wrote:
@luvmybeetle....I really, really, need to trim the strawbery hydrangea...I have two -close together, they are huge. I had no idea they would grow so large or I never would have bought two....the nursery knew where I was planting them...I showed photos of where I was going to plant.....they never said a word about possibly being to big.

If I don't trim and we get a heavy snow, I think there could be serious damage to the plants.

I didn't know they would get really big either. I have a bit of room for them but they are really full. Mine also turn different colors during the blooming time. As the season goes by they start to turn a different color. I have always trimmed before Winter and they always come back just beautifully.

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

Mom2Dogs — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 02:08:39 GMT

@Chicagosuburbangirl.....my instincts told me to trim....so I will trim!

I trim everything down in the garden in the fall, sometimes I also trim my daylillies after they bloom and then I get a 2nd bloom a few weeks later!

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

Veridoc — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 11:58:52 GMT

I always trim back in the fall. I use the leaves I rake for mulch and really pile them on. It works really good, except for this year. I would really love to hear from you all about my hydrangea dilemma. It was really getting big and full of blooms and then whammy....it stopped growing and lost leaves. We did have an unusual amount of rain this summer so I wonder if it got too much water. It is in a spot that has good drainage. I live in the south and it is planted on the north side of the house and gets morning sun. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

PINKdogWOOD — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 12:25:31 GMT

@BirkiLady My DH who is very seasoned landscaper. He said the old fashioned blooms on 2nd yr wood so you should prune just the blooms. Don't cut these back b/c you'll cut off the old wood.

The new one, strawberry blooms on new wood so you can cut back early spring b/c they bloom in the summer. And he said you could prune these spring and/or fall.

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

jlkz — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 14:13:03 GMT

I have 2 hydrangea plants in the front raised oval bed and 1 out back next to the gazebo.

I asked the same question and got much advice. Didn’t trim back the gazebo one and it GREW more, too much so. The front two got cut to the ground. They are fine.

Last year, I decided they all were being cut to the ground. Size is much more manageable. Flowers: depends on the type of winter and the oddball 70 degree weather in the middle of winter !

Sedums get cut to the ground or the thorns next spring when you want to cut the stalks down will really hurt, even through leather gardening gloves. No bad effect on future growth !

The Stella D’Oros get spent blades and dried flower stalks cleaned up after the first bloom: they keep on blooming all summer. After the first frost, they are tossed.

Less stamina and desire to garden now: found new homes for a lot of plants, flowers, and shrubs.

The only work project are my yellow iris:

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

BirkiLady — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 19:29:15 GMT

@PINKdogWOODHe's absolutely correct. That's why I told the OP to check on Google. She needs to educate herself about the plants she has and how to properly care for them. She has two different kinds and apparently didn't have a clue. I gave her that information, but she needs to do some homework on her own in order to successfully care for them and prune them accurately. Too much to teach her in a few paragraphs on this site!

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

JustJazzmom — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 00:46:06 GMT

@jlkz, sedums & Stella D’oro daylilues are perennials. No need to toss the dayliles, just remove the browned stems & leaves in fall & they will return in spring. Sedums — same advice— remove dead stems, spent flowers or leave up for winter interest, then remove the dead stuff above ground before the green new foliage/stems come up in spring.

@Mom2Dogs What Birkilady said, trim the old style hydrangea plant in early to mid September, before blooms are set for coming year. The old style hydrangea blooms on the previous year’s growth, so pruning in late fall or early spring might cause removal of buds (no flowers or less flowers seen in summer).

The strawberry hydrangea if it’s in full sun might be a Hydrangea paniculata with panicles as flowers instead of pom poms or lacecaps. That plant can be pruned in spring before the buds form (blooms on the current season’s growth).

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

Mom2Dogs — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 00:52:37 GMT

@JustJazzmom, yes the strawberry hydrangea is a paniculata...it is so big that I am worried about it breaking under a heavy snow this winter, that is why I wanted to trim in the fall.

Thanks for the advice.

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

JustJazzmom — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 00:56:29 GMT

@Mom2Dogs wrote:
@JustJazzmom, yes the strawberry hydrangea is a paniculata...it is so big that I am worried about it breaking under a heavy snow this winter, that is why I wanted to trim in the fall.

Thanks for the advice.

Definitely prune in fall then to shape, especially to avoid branch breakage with snow & ice storms.

Re: hydrangea plants.....trimming

Nataliesgramma — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 11:54:48 GMT

I agree with @BirkiLady....Google what type you have.

I trimmed mine back in the fall and the following year had no blooms.....Found out mine were supposed to be trimmed in the Spring....

Now I have blooms since I trimmed this year in the Spring..