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Sad Hydrangea

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  • TerryannTerryann Posts: 48
    I have one in a pot, which this has happened to also?  Do I take off the whole of the leaf or just cut off the brown bits?
  • luis_prluis_pr Posts: 123
    edited May 2021
    The leaves resemble those of a Hydrangea macrophylla. Those tend to break dormancy early and get zapped by late frosts or they are purchased in early Spring and theeen they get zapped. A late frost occurs when temperatures are above freezing and the dew point is "just right" but since radio and tv do not talk much about dew points, remember that it may/could happen when temperatures are between 0°C and 6°C... usually less of a chance as we get close to 6°C but still possible and spottier.

    If late frost are announced and the plant has already leafed out, you can try making sure the plant has some mulch (5-10 cms), water deeply the night before and maybe cover the plant with a frost cloth or some blankets (as long as the blankets do not weigh too much and might break branches and such). If the plant is in a pot, you could bring the pot inside temporarily and back outside when daytime temperatures are above 6-10°C. But, if this becomes a problem often every year and you often get no blooms because the flower buds are getting zapped, you could switch to a rebloomer macrophylla, a serrata, an oakleaf hydrangea, an Annabelle-like hydrangea (also called H. arborescens or Smooth Hydrangea) or a Pee Gee-like hydrangea (also called a H. paniculata).

    Hopefully, the flower buds inside the ends of the stems were not damaged. The damage is not visible until the flower buds open and the tiny broccoli heads surface. If the buds are fully or partially brown, they may have gotten injured.

    Hydrangea macrophyllas currently have flower buds inside their stems so now is not a good a time to prune, especially since the top 4" are at the ends of the stems, where the hidden Spring 2021 flower buds reside until the plant starts fully actively growing, it gets lots of sunlight and warmer temperatures. Hydrangea serratas, which are smaller and usually produce lacecap types of blooms (but not always), will do the same but they prefer to wake up or bloom a little later. Hydrangea arborescens, which are similar to the Annabelle hydrangea, have no flower buds to worry about now. They only produce flower buds in mid-Spring ish and the buds open right a way.

    Deadheading to remove last year's spent flowers can be done at any time but can be stressful as one is worried about cutting off Spring-Summer blooms. To be 100% certain you are not cutting flower buds, you could cut the spent flowers's peduncle, which is the little string that connects the spent bloom to the stem.





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