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Non-flowering hydrangeas

JenKentJenKent Posts: 53
in Problem solving
In January this year I posted for advice regarding 3 non-flowering hydrangeas which I had planted 3 years previously.  They had all had wonderful growth and leaves and no flowers - ever!  I had previously pruned almost to the ground leaving a couple of new leaves on each stem and cutting out old wood.  On some advice I decided to prune leaving about 6-8 inches from the ground.  I also started feeding with tomato liquid feed every two weeks at the end of March.  The hydrangeas are planted under a 'Red Robin' and rhododendron and need a lot of watering as they are in full sun for most of the day.  They definitely do not like the heat, but I am pleased to report that this year there are signs of a few flower heads on each of the 3 hydrangeas. Yay!  So I'm hoping that I will get a display of lovely pink and white blooms.  Thanks to all those who came up with ideas on how to get flowers and I shall not prune so hard and make sure I feed them regularly throughout the spring and summer next year - and here's to more flowers!

Posts

  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    IF they are mophead or lacecap hydrangeas you have been carefully pruning out the flowering wood as they flower on wood that is at least one year old.
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • JenKentJenKent Posts: 53
    That must be where I was going wrong!  I am definitely not going to prune back to the ground any more on those particular hydrangeas.  I have some others with smaller flowers that I always prune back to two buds just above the ground and they flower like mad every year on new growth from the ground as well as the buds I have left in place. I guess I'll have to leave more of the old wood in the 3 that haven't been flowering.  It's very confusing!
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    It's very simple if you think about it.   Now you know the mopheads and lace caps flower on old wood you know not to prune them unless you need to control the size, in which case you take out whole stems, back to the base. 

    If you remove a third of the stems each year you will always have 2/3rds flowering and one third growing and ready to take over the following year.   Make sure you remove any dead, damaged or diseased stems first and then the oldest stems each time and then your shrub will be completely renewed every 3 years.

    Hydrangea paniculata and arborescens types flower best on new wood so can be cut back to a good frame every spring and will then produce new stems and flowers.   Hydrangea quercifolia should only be lightly pruned.

    Have a read of this and all will become clear - 

    https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=516    
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • JenKentJenKent Posts: 53
    Thank you.  I'm going to keep that advice handy so I can refer to it if I still get a bit confused!  Hopefully will have a garden full of hydrangeas in flower every year from now on.
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    The only thing I would add to the advice already given, is that you said these were 'under a red robin and a rhododendron, and need a lot of watering as they're in full sun for most of the day'.
    Not the best site for them - or the rhodo.  All of those will perform best with some shade. Some sun for them is fine if you have the right climate - plenty of cloudy, wet days to keep them right :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • JenKentJenKent Posts: 53
    Thanks. The rhodo has been there for over 40 years and the red robin for 6 years, and still going strong.  They are there to shield us from the houses behind. Both have been pruned over the years and remain healthy. I water the hydrangeas in the evening every other day, or if the tops start wilting in the heat I throw buckets of water round the roots. They soon perk up. There are also christmas box, laurels, ferns, azaleas, hostas and yellow iris in the same corner of the garden.  The hostas have been really good this year; huge leaves and lots of flowers.  Thankfully the slugs have left them alone.  The area is covered with a permeable membrane and shale - which I hope retains the moisture.
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