Hydrangeas are a “cottage garden favourite” flour, and they look stunning thanks to their “big fluffy blooms” that can really brighten up your green space, but are you making a huge mistake with them by not pruning them properly?
If you want your hydrangeas to flower properly come spring 2025, then you’ll need to do some prep during the winter to ensure they reach their full potential.
TikTok user @enviiukk said: “If you’re not pruning them the right way, then you could be missing out on their full potential.”
The best time to prune hydrangeas is early spring, but there are things which need to be done now to ensure the plant lasts.
“It’s really important to leave the flower heads on over winter because they help to protect any new buds which are forming lower down in the plant,” the user explained.
The experts then shared there are two key pruning techniques you will want to use, depending on the type of hydrangea you have blooming in your garden.
“There are plants which flower on old wood and plants which flower on new wood,” she explained.
She continued: “Smooth and Panicle hydrangeas flower on new wood, so they can be cut back much harder to just above a couple of healthy buds lower down in the plant.
“The Macrophylla hydrangeas called the Lacecaps and the Mopheads will flower on old wood, so all you need to do is remove the flower head, just above a couple of nodes, come spring, you should see new shoots appearing, and then flowers will form from midsummer.”
She promised if you get your pruning right, your garden will have never looked better.
In the comments, people had questions about their hydrangeas. One wrote: “I have a smashing one in a pot; when will I transfer it to the ground now or springtime?”
The gardeners responded: “Try to plant this Autumn/Winter before the ground freezes over but when the plant is in a dormant state.”
Someone asked: “How do I cut back Mophead? If I don’t, it will take over the whole garden. Can I cut it back hard?”
They responded: “I’d recommend cutting back 1/3 to 1/2 of the stems harder so you still get flowers next year. They can get huge!”
