Don't just water it, drench it. It doesn't matter what you do with the cutting back, just get it really wet. Check the water goes down to the roots rather than running off the surface.
Thanks @Posy yes I gave them a good drenching (there are 5 hydrangeas like that) as soon as I got back. Today, I left the hose dribbling water for a long while over the crown of each plant.
I had been watering them before I went away (always deeply and occasionally, rather than little and often); they're planted in a spot that only gets morning sun, but the last 3-4 months of drought has taken its toll meaning the heatwave could then knock them for six. I was talking to a friend today who's a farming consultant locally, he reckons we've had 17mm of rain since the start of April.
I've cut just one of them back to about 12 inches of stems. Interested to see if there's a difference in how it recovers compared to the others.
@WallflowerBry - yes I've been surprised how robust the heucheras have been. There's a group of them there, only the smallest one (out of shot) is suffering. In contrast, next to the hydrangeas there's a huge Bear's Breeches (Acanthus mollis) that is really struggling and I thought they were indestructible.
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Good luck with the hydrangea.
When there's some moisture in the ground I'll dig it up and dump it.
I've put up with it for ten years.
I had been watering them before I went away (always deeply and occasionally, rather than little and often); they're planted in a spot that only gets morning sun, but the last 3-4 months of drought has taken its toll meaning the heatwave could then knock them for six. I was talking to a friend today who's a farming consultant locally, he reckons we've had 17mm of rain since the start of April.
I've cut just one of them back to about 12 inches of stems. Interested to see if there's a difference in how it recovers compared to the others.
@WallflowerBry - yes I've been surprised how robust the heucheras have been. There's a group of them there, only the smallest one (out of shot) is suffering. In contrast, next to the hydrangeas there's a huge Bear's Breeches (Acanthus mollis) that is really struggling and I thought they were indestructible.
2 months on, there's very little visible difference between the two (though the ones I left did subsequently flower, albeit very half-heartedly).
Pics from today, after cutting away all the dead material:
One that I didn't hack back:
The one I hacked back