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Hydrangea help- newbie

s.londesboroughs.londesborough Posts: 4
in Plants
Hi everyone! 
I am a gardening newbie and have this large hydrangea in my garden. I have left it for the 4 years I’ve lived here to do its own thing with some mild pruning each spring. This year I’ve had a good look and there are so many dead branches underneath. 
Can anyone give me some advice on beat to proceed. Do I cut it right back which seems a shame as it looks lovely when it flowers or just leave it and carry on letting it do its thing.

thanks a lot! 

Sarah 
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Posts

  • Fran IOMFran IOM Posts: 2,872

    Had a job to see them on their side but better now. Won't give any advice but I'm sure there will be someone along soon.  :)
  • bcpathomebcpathome Posts: 1,313
    That should have been dealt with long before now you know . You are going to have to be quite drastic I think and risk losing blooms this year . Firstly cut back the bits with no new growth , then see what’s left . If you want a smaller bush you will have to risk cutting it all by at least half . Then next year you will get blooms again hopefully.
  • s.londesboroughs.londesborough Posts: 4
    Yeah I’m sure it would have been beneficial to have done something sooner but as I said I’m a newbie to gardening and only just taken an interest! Hopefully I can salvage it. 
    Many thanks for your reply. 


  • Robert WestRobert West Posts: 241
    They're pretty tough and will recover from a hard prune but as other have said you may lose flowers for a year.

    Slightly different option if you don't want to be so drastic...

    You could chop every stem back to the lowest bud, don't worry if it's a bit lop sided at this point.

    I would then get in and chop every dead stem back as low as possible, right near the ground preferably as that will let new growth come from the base.

    Finally, go back to the stems you cut back to a bud, and chop every other one back by half. So have the living stems are long and half of them are shorter. That way you should still get some flowers this year but it will also produce some new growth lower down.

    Next year cut back all those longer stems you left this time round to half way. So it's all been cut back at some point over the two years.

    Each year after that you should cut each good healthy stem back to the lowest bud and remove all dead stuff at the base. That will keep it nice and compact. 
  • s.londesboroughs.londesborough Posts: 4
    Thank you thats really helpful 
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    It'll be fine @s.londesborough - so don't worry about which method you use for pruning - both approaches will rejuvenate it. The usual* three year one is good but the hard prune is probably better for you at this stage, until you feel more confident with it all. 

    * This is the way to rejuvenate any shrub that's outgrown it's space or needs refreshed completely. You take around a third of the stems/branches back to the base, or a very low bud. The following year you take another third back in the same way, and then cut back the remaining stems the third year. It's easiest to do it starting with the ones at the back, just because it avoids breaking any of the ones you've already cut by leaning over them  ;)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    I have several Hydrangeas and every so often I cut some of them right back to the ground almost.
    I don’t like the look of the third out pruning,  I would rather lose the flowers for this year and have a thick plant next year when you can just nip the tops off and have it covered with flowers.
    Choices,,, we all do different,  it’s up to you. You won’t hurt the plant whatever you choose. 
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • s.londesboroughs.londesborough Posts: 4
    Thank you everyone! 
    Given me then confidence to go for it! Whatever I do will be better than nothing for sure! 
  • borgadrborgadr Posts: 718
    Whether you lose flowers will depend what kind of hydrangea you have.   If its a paniculata you can prune hard back and it will flower off new growth.  If it's a mophead you'll lose flowers as they flower on buds formed last year.
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I agree with @Lyn though - the 'all over haircut' tends to look better than the 3 year method, but it always comes down to personal preference. 

    Do you know what the flowers were like @s.londesborough? As @borgadr says - the paniculatas flower on new wood anyway,  so if it's one of those, you'll still get flowers anyway. If they were elongated flowers, that's a paniculata. Mopheads or lacecaps are pretty much as they sound - rounder, with the lacecaps being a bit flatter than mophead    :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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