How to Care for Hydrangeas

Nothing looks better in a summer garden than the beautiful flower heads of hydrangeas. Learn how to care for hydrangeas in this video by Better Homes and Gardens:

A common concern is pruning as people are afraid of cutting off all of the beautiful flowers. When should you prune hydrangeas, or should you prune them at all? You don’t need to prune them at all if you don’t want to, but you may want to prune plants that are getting too tall or floppy. The large-leaf macrophylla group needs to be pruned after they bloom, and then you will get new flowers the nest year. The paniculata group has woody stems and should be pruned in the early spring.

Hydrangeas can be planted at any time during the spring, summer and fall. Plant them to the depth they are at in their pots. Look at the guidelines on the instruction tag to make sure you space them properly as some will grow to be very large.

Hydrangeas need a lot of watering. It only takes 1-2 days without any rain to cause them to wilt; if that happens, just give them a good dose of water, and they will perk back up. If you have a hydrangea that really looks dried up, it will not look pretty for the rest of the year. Water it well and cut off the flower heads back to the green leaves, and the plant will bounce back the next year.