Hydrangeas are loved for their gorgeous blooms, which come in various shades of white, pink, and more. They’re really easy to look after, provided they receive the correct care, which involves pruning. Autumn pruning is important for many plants, including hydrangeas, where it helps to maintain their size and shape.
The aim is to remove dead, diseased, and damaged stems and improve the plant or shrub’s appearance. However, according to one expert, pruning at the “wrong” time of year can result in a non-blooming plant.
Paul Parker, gardening expert at plants and perennials specialists, J.Parker’s, said: “When to prune hydrangeas largely depends on the type of hydrangea you have in your garden. If you aren’t sure what type is growing in your garden, I advise you to wait for them to flower in summer and prune them the following year.”
The expert said shrubby hydrangeas should be pruned in late winter or early spring. This is because the flower heads act as a protection from frost for new buds.
Paul added: “Popular shrubby hydrangea varieties include mophead hydrangea, like the Hydrangea arborescens Annabelle, and shrubby lacecap hydrangea (the serrata and aspera types).
“The popular Macrophylla Hydrangeas fall into both of these, so it’s important to do your research first. However, pruning advice may differ slightly between varieties, so it is always best to check.”
To prune a shrubby hydrangea, remove any dead, diseased, damaged or crossing stems. On older plants, you can cut back one or two old stems to ground level to encourage them to produce new growth.
Hydrangea paniculata is slightly different, according to the expert, if this is the variety you have in your garden.
Paul said: “It is only essential to cut off any dead wood in spring; however, you’ll notice an abundance of new, healthy blooms when you do an annual hard prune.
“For more flowers each spring, you can prune these hydrangeas to the lowest pair of healthy buds, creating a more compact but flowery look.”
Climbing hydrangeas are slow growers, meaning you won’t need to prune them for the first two to three years after planting.
When they do need pruning, shorten any straggling shoots, cutting back to a lower pair of healthy, strong buds.
The garden pro noted: “Try to avoid pruning too much off the top of the plant, as this is where most of the flowers will appear.”
