Growing Hydrangeas

How to Plant, Grow, and Prune Hydrangeas

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With immense flower heads, hydrangeas flaunt an old-fashioned charm in summertime that’s hard to resist. While these flowering shrubs are low-maintenance, proper care will keep them blooming. Our Hydrangea Guide provides summer plant care tips for all you need to know about growing hydrangeas—from watering to fertilizing to pruning to winter care.

About Hydrangeas

Unrivaled in the shrub world for beautiful flowers, these elegant plants are easy to cultivate, tolerate almost any soil, and produce abundant blooms. Colors beguile with clear blue, vibrant pink, frosty white, lavender, and rose blossoms—sometimes all blooming on the same plant!

Hydrangeas are excellent for a range of garden sites from group plantings to shrub borders to containers. Varieties abound (every year, it seems, breeders present us with more options!), and gardeners’ expectations of bloom size and color are boundless. To know how your hydrangea will grow, pay attention to the types, defined below. When you know what to expect, delights will be magnified.

Enjoy this ode to the beautiful of hydrangeas and learn how to grow hydrangeas in our guide below.

Planting

When to Plant Hydrangeas

Plant in spring after the last spring frost or in fall before the first fall frost. See local frost dates.
Plant before the heat of summer arrives.

Where to Plant Hydrangeas

Most hydrangeas will thrive in fertile, well-draining soils that receive plenty of moisture. Add compost to enrich poor soil.
Generally, hydrangeas prefer partial sun. Ideally, they will be given full sun in the morning, with some afternoon shade to protect from the hot midday sun. This is especially true for the Bigleaf hydrangea (H. macrophylla), which is prone to wilting. Some varieties are more tolerant of full sun.
Space hydrangeas anywhere from 3 to 10 feet apart, depending on type.

How to Plant Hydrangeas

Dig a hole as deep as the root ball and 2 to 3 times as wide.
Set the plant in the hole and fill it half full with soil. Water. After water is absorbed, fill the rest of the hole with soil.
Water thoroughly again.

Pink hydrangea flowers

How to Grow Hydrangeas from Cuttings

Hydrangeas can easily be grown from cuttings. They root readily and the process makes for a great lesson in propagation. Here’s how to do it:

On a well-established hydrangea, find a branch that is new growth and that has not flowered. New growth will appear lighter in color than old growth, and the stem will not be as rigid.
From the tip of the branch, move 4 to 5 inches down and make a horizontal cut. Make sure that there are at least 3 to 4 pairs of leaves on your cutting.
Remove the lowest pair of leaves from the cutting, trimming them flush to the stem. Roots grow more easily from these leaf nodes, so if you can afford to remove more than one pair of leaves, do so. Be sure to keep at least 2 pairs of leaves at the tip end of the cutting, though.
If the remaining leaves are quite large, cut them in half, removing the tip-half. This prevents the leaves from hitting the sides of the plastic bag you will place over the cutting later on (to keep the humidity up).
(Optional) Dust the leafless part of the stem with rooting hormone and an anti-fungal powder for plants (both available at a local hardware or garden store). This will encourage rooting and discourage rotting.
Prepare a small pot and fill it with moistened potting mix. Plant the cutting in the soil, sinking it down to the first pair of remaining leaves. Water lightly to get rid of any air gaps around the stem.
Cover the entire pot loosely with a plastic bag. Make sure the bag isn’t touching the leaves of the cutting, otherwise the leaves can rot. (Chopsticks or something similar can be used to prop up the bag and keep it off the leaves.)
Place the pot in a warm area that’s sheltered from direct sunlight and wind.
Check on your cutting every few days to make sure that it isn’t rotting and only water again once the top layer of soil is dry. With luck, the cutting should root in a few weeks! (Check by gently pulling on the cutting; if you feel resistance, roots have formed.)

Care

Hydrangea Care

Watering

For the first year or two after planting and during any drought, be sure hydrangeas get plenty of water.
Water at a rate of 1 inch per week throughout the growing season. It’s better to deeply water 3 times a week than sprinkle water in a shallow manner. This encourages root growth.
Bigleaf and smooth hydrangeas require more water, but all varieties benefit from consistent moisture.
Leaves will wilt if the soil is too dry, and flowering will be hampered by a lack of water.
Use a soaker hose to water deeply and keep moisture off the flowers and leaves.
It’s best to water in the morning to prepare hydrangeas for the the heat of the day and to avoid disease.
Add organic mulch underneath your hydrangeas to help keep the soil moist and cool, add nutrients over time, and improve soil texture.

Fertilizing

If your soil is rich, you may not need to fertilize hydrangeas. Too much fertilizer encourages leafy growth at the expense of blooms. The best way to determine your fertility needs is by using a soil test.

Apply fertilizer based on your specific hydrangeas. Each variety has different needs and will benefit from different application timing.

Bigleaf hydrangeas can benefit from several light fertilizer applications in March, May and June.
Oakleaf and panicle hydrangeas do best with two applications in April and June.
Smooth hydrangea plants only need fertilization once, in late winter.

Winter protection

In the fall, cover plants to a depth of at least 18 inches with bark mulch, leaves, pine needles, or straw in the fall. If at all possible, cover the entire plant, tip included, by making cages out of snow fencing or chicken wire, and loosely filling the cages with leaves. (Do not use maple leaves, as they tend to mat when wet and can suffocate the plant.)

How to Change the Color of Hydrangea Flowers

It is possible to change the flowers’ colors, but not instantly. Color correction takes weeks—even months. Wait until the plant is at least 2 years old to give it time to recover from the shock of its original planting. Also note that it’s easier to change blue flowers to pink than pink to blue.

It’s not every hydrangea that changes color. The color of some Bigleaf hydrangeas (H. macrophylla)—especially Mophead and Lacecap types—and H. serrata cultivars change color based on the soil pH.

Acidic soils with a pH of less than 5.5 produce blue flowers; soils with a pH greater than 5.5 produce pink flowers. White flowers are not affected by pH.

See How to Change the Color of Hydrangea Flowers for more information.

Hydrangea colors

How to Prune a Hydrangea

Many of our readers’ questions involve pruning hydrangeas. And no wonder—it’s confusing, and all depends on the variety of hydrangea. Luckily, as long as you know which type you’ve got, it’s easy to figure out what sort of pruning technique to employ.

Learn the essentials below, then read more about how to prune hydrangea varieties here.

Hydrangea Type	When to Prune	Where Flowers Appear
Bigleaf (H. macrophylla)	Summer, after flowering	On old growth
Oakleaf (H. quercifolia)	Summer, after flowering	On old growth
Panicle (H. paniculata)	Late winter, before spring growth	On new growth
Smooth (H. arborescens)	Late winter, before spring growth	On new growth
Mountain (H. serrata)	Summer, after flowering	On old growth
Climbing (H. anomala subsp. petiolaris)	Summer, after flowering	On old growth

Pruning Common Hydrangeas

The most common garden hydrangea shrub is the Bigleaf variety, Hydrangea macrophylla. (See more below.)

Bigleaf (H. macrophylla), Oakleaf (H. quercifolia), Mountain (H. serrata), and Climbing hydrangeas (H. anomala subsp. petiolaris) are pruned AFTER the flowers fade in the summer. These varieties bloom on the previous season’s stems (“old wood”).

Flower buds actually form in the late summer and flower afterwards the following season, so avoid pruning after August 1.
Only cut away dead wood in the fall or very early spring.
To prune, cut one or two of the oldest stems down to the base to encourage branching and fullness.
If the plant is old, neglected, or damaged, prune all the stems down to the base. You’ll lose the flowers for the upcoming season, but also rejuvenate the plant for future years.
It’s best not to deadhead (remove faded blooms) on the big Mopheads; leave them over the winter and cut them back in early spring (to the first healthy pair of buds). It’s fine to deadhead the Lacecaps; cut down to the second pair of leaves below the flower head.
When growing H. macrophylla (and H. serrata) varieties in Zones 4 and 5, do not prune unless absolutely necessary, and then do so immediately after blooming. Otherwise, remove only dead stem in the spring.

Other Hydrangeas

Panicle (H. paniculata) and Smooth (H. arborescens) hydrangeas are pruned BEFORE flower buds are formed. These varieties bloom on the current season’s stems (“new wood”).

Prune in the late winter when the plant is dormant. This means that if the buds are killed during the winter, the plant will produce new buds in the spring which will produce blooms.
In general, prune only dead branches, and do not prune to “shape” the bush.

Read more about how to prune hydrangea types.

Pests/Diseases

Protect against pests and disease by choosing resistant cultivars.

Powdery mildew, leaf spot, wilt, and bight can all appear on hydrangeas.
Pests are rare, but can appear when plants become stressed. Common pests include aphids and red spider mites.

Properly caring for hydrangeas is your best defense. (See above tips on watering and hydrangea care.)

Harvest/Storage

How to Cut and Store Dried Hydrangea Flowers

Use dried hydrangea flowers to create a wreath or other decorations around the house:

Cut the flower heads when the flowers have matured and developed a papery consistency.
Remove leaves from stems, and hang upside down in a warm, dry, dark, airy room.
When completely dry (usually a couple of weeks), store in a dry location out of direct sunlight.
To enhance flower color, spritz dry flowers with diluted fabric dye.

Bigleaf Hydrangea (mophead)

How to Use Hydrangeas in a Bouquet

Place the freshly cut hydrangea stems immediately into cold water to avoid wilting.
Recut the woody stems at a slant under water. Remove lower leaves on the stems.
Arrange the stems in a vase and place in a cool spot.
Check the water in the vase daily and mist the blooms with water.
Soak wilting blooms in cool water for 10 to 15 minutes to revive them.

Recommended Varieties

For a more detailed overview of the many types of hydrangeas, check out Hydrangea Varieties for Every Garden.

There are two main groups of hydrangeas:

Group 1: Plants that Bloom on New Growth (This Year’s Stems)

The following hydrangeas, which form their buds in early summer on new growth, will flower reliably each year, requiring no special care.

Panicle hydrangeas (Hydrangea paniculata)
- ‘Grandiflora’ is a big, old-fashioned, floppy variety, ‘Tardiva’, ‘White Moth’, and ‘Pee Wee’ fit the scale of small gardens. ‘Limelight’ produces cool-green flowers and grows to a height of 6 to 8 feet.
Smooth hydrangeas (H. arborescens)
- Look for the cultivars H. arborescens ‘Grandiflora’ and ‘Annabelle’, which produce many large (up to 14 inches across), tight, symmetrical blooms in late summer.

Bigleaf hydrangea lacecap
Image: Lacecap hydrangea

Group 2: Plants that Bloom on Old Growth (Last Year’s Stems)

If you live in Zone 8 or warmer, choose plants from this group. Gardeners in cool climate zones will find many of them a challenge, because they set flower buds in the fall. Although hardy to Zones 4 and 5, the buds are prone to damage by an early frost in fall, a late frost in spring, or excessively cold temperatures when dormant in winter. This, along with untimely pruning, can result in inconsistent flowering or no flowering at all.

Oakleaf hydrangeas (H. quercifolia)
- You can expect exceptional fall color from ‘Snow Queen’, ‘Snow Flake’, and ‘Alice’.
Bigleaf hydrangeas (H. macrophylla)
- We love ‘All Summer Beauty’ (Mophead), which has profuse, dark blue flowers—turning more pink in soils with near neutral pH. If its buds are winter-killed, the plant will form new ones in spring and still bloom.
- ‘Nikko Blue’ (Mophead) is vigorous, with large, rounded, blue flowers.
- ‘Blue Wave’ (Lacecap) produces rich blue to mauve or lilac-blue to pink flowers.
- ‘Color Fantasy’ (Mophead) has reddish or deep purple flowers and shiny, dark green leaves. It grows to about 3 feet tall.
Mountain hydrangeas (H. serrata)
- Examples are ‘Bluebird’ and ‘Diadem’. In acidic soil, ‘Preziosa’ produces blossoms of an extraordinary blend of pale shades of blue, mauve, violet, and green.
Climbing hydrangeas (H. anomala ssp. Petiolaris)
- ‘Firefly’ is a newly-patented variety exhibiting variegated foliage.

For more about hydrangea varieties, see Hydrangea Varieties for Every Garden.

Wit & Wisdom

The word “hydrangea” is derived from Greek hydor meaning “water” and angeion meaning “vessel,” referring to the plant’s seed pods, which look like small water jugs.
In the language of flowers, hydrangeas symbolize gratitude for being understood, or frigidity and heartlessness. See more flower meanings.

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Reader Comments

white hydrangea

I find your website very interesting and helpful.
I bought a white hydrangea, it was growing well and started to bloom then the whole plant dried up and die. I don't what why. I was watering it regularly and feeding it too. What do you suggest.

Hydrangea Sudden Death

Hi Medha,

I suspect your hydrangea was exposed to some kind of soil-borne disease, such as Phytophthora root rot. It is important to test your soil before replanting, as many plants succumb to that disease. If it is in the soil, the soil should be replaced before you plant anything.

hydrangea vs maple leaf

I read on your Web site that you don't recommend Maple leaf for mulch or Winter protection. Could you tell me the reason why not because I do this every year. I put around 3 inches of shredded Maple leaves around my hydrangea each year. Thanks in advance for your reply.

Maple Leaves as Mulch

Hi Michel - I just wondered if you ever received an answer to your question. I have the same one. I have a red maple that, of course, looses it's leaves right along with my oaks, so I would like to know the answer too. I am getting ready, next weekend, to plant 4 hydrangeas. I hope you get this message before then, if not, I'll be checking elsewhere for the answer.
Thanks, Diane

Maple leaves

The reason we say to avoid maple leaves is because they tend to be very large, flat, and mat together (especially the Norway and Sugar maple leaves). This doesn’t allow enough air circulation. It’s best to use oak or other leaves. If you do have a lot of maple leaves, just be sure to mix with a lot of other types of leaves and pine needles.

Blooming

One of my hydrangeas, planted 2 years ago is green and healthy, but doesn't bloom, even though I've fertilized. It gets some morning sun. Does it need more sun? It's the big, blue bloom type.
M. Richardson

blooms

I planted a hydrangea 4 years ago. The first year yielded 7-8 bloom.s The next year only 2 blooms. The last 2 summers there have been no blooms but the bush has very healthy, vibrant green foliage and has grown much larger. I would appreciate any suggestions on getting this bush to bloom

Hydrangea Blooms

The blooming of hydrangeas is affected by how they have been pruned, which depends on the type of hydrangea. Some bloom on second-year wood, others on the current year’s growth. Not knowing the type you have or how it has been pruned, I can’t say for sure why it isn’t blooming. Try fertilizing and determine its pruning requirements–the answer could lie there.

Need help with water-logged hydrangea

I transplanted my hydrangea into a larger pot and gave it plenty of water, when it started to rain and hasn't stopped for a couple of weeks.. I noticed the plant wasn't looking well and noticed about 3'' of water in the pot because of poor drainage. I drilled more holes to allow more water to escape but the dirt around the plant is soaking wet, and it looks the leaves and flowers are getting brown. it looks like its on it's last legs, is there anything I can do to save it? It was absolutely gorgeous!!

?transplant shock?

My hydrangea's leaves are beautiful but all the blooms have turned from a lovely pink to light green then brown. I transplanted it from it's original container to a larger one, then into the ground. I have watered well and gently fertilized. It is in a moderately sunny location with good soil. I hope this is just transplant shock, but I'm concerned that I've done it real harm. Help please!

Hydrangea re-potting

I have several Hydrangeas' that need re-potting. Should I do it now before the winter, or wait until the spring? The plants are on a roof garden in the Torquay area.
A reply would be appreciated. Thank you.

Repotting Hydrangeas

Hi Ann,

Either time would be fine. If you do it now, be sure to provide ample water.

vanilla strawberry hydranga

I have purchased some seeds and am not sure when I can start planting them? Should I start them in my house?

New probagation of hydrangea plant

I have just read on FB how to probagate the hydrangea plant, so have done so. I am wanting to know (a) do I put them in my garage over the winter or do I put them in the ground after the roots have started and protect the plant? I live in southern Kansas and the ground freezes.

Hydrangea bush

Hydrangea bush
I have 5of them I transplanted last fall and they grew well and only had one flower and this summer they have no flowers but the plant is beautiful! What am I doing wrong

hydrangea blooms

I have mopheads that growing on both old and new wood is that possible. I had beautiful flowers for the first couple of years but now only the city line hydrangeas are blooming. I have fertilized the plants, covered them over winter, I did not prune them in fear of cutting the buds. They are in full sun and some in part sun. I have no idea why they won't bloom. I have a lot of plants and they were expensive. The plants are about 8 years old.

Hydrangea

I have several large hydrangea plants close together, they are quite tall and some are falling over...do I stake them? How do I prevent this?

Hydrangeas Need Pruning

It sounds like your shrubs could stand to be pruned (a little on the hard side) after the blooming season. A combination thinning and heading cuts will keep them from getting tall and floppy. In the meantime, you could use twine to loosely tie them up.

HYDRANGEA

Can I plant it in the garden it's in a pot but I'm afraid if it stays in the pot it may become pot bound thanks

Nicco Blue

My hydrangeas are 15 yrs old
For the last two years they bloom less
This year hardy plant almost no flowers
Please advise

White mop head hydrangeas

My white mop head hydrangeas start out white in the spring but turn green by the end of June. How do I keep the heads white?

Hydrangea

My son bought me a hydrangea for Mother's Day about three years ago.I planted it outside and it didnt do anything till last year and it came back but not very tall (4 to 5 inches).This year it it's doing better (1'1/2 tall) but not much of anything else.Will it ever bloom? Thank you for your time.

Silverish Leaf Spots

I have a blue hydrangea that I put in about 6 weeks ago. Generally, it appears to be doing pretty good and there's some new leaf growth and what I'm hoping is going to be another bloom. However, some of the older leaves have developed silverish areas (kind of looks like sun burn). They get morning sun and I've really made an effort with this plant as I've not had any luck with hydrangeas before. I live in Oregon, about 5000 feet altitude (high desert). I haven't been able to find anything so I'm hoping you can help. Thanks!!

Silver Leaves on Hydrangea

Hi Linda,

Hydrangeas thrive in woodland gardens, so that might be why you have had a hard time with them. But with regular slow-release granular fertilizer applications, plenty of water, and proper pruning, they should do just fine (as long as they are not sitting in baking hot sun all day). As for the silver leaves, I suspect it is powdery mildew, which is very common in the Pacific Northwest. It will not kill the plant. Remove the affected foliage and keep the soil free of any fallen leaves. Air circulation is important, so anything you can do to increase it is advised. Your plant sounds too young to do any real pruning on, but as it grows, keep on top of the pruning so branches don’t get crowded. Powdery mildew likes moist, temperate conditions.

Winter

Somewhat of a strange subject for the middle of the summer. Anyway, the winters here can be very harsh and I'm planning ahead. The plant is up against a fence (faces east) so it's pretty well protected from the wind. My question is what should I do to help it make it through the winter?? Should I prune it in the Fall?? Also, thanks very much for the advice on my leaf problem. It's now turned from silverish to tan and crunchy. I've been picking off the affected leaves and it looks OK. I REALLY want this plant to make it. Thanks, again!!

Question

I have a hydrangea plant that has red/black spots all over it. Is it sick and how do I fix it? I was going to send a pic but I can't on here.

If I want to move my

If I want to move my hydrangeas when is the best time in the year? Mine I believe are not getting enough sunlight.

When to move hydrangea

Yes, you should move your hydrangea if it is not getting enough sunlight which is needed for flower production. Move the hydrangea in the fall once it’s fully dormant (after a couple hard frosts if possible). You can really move it any time before early spring.

Diseased hydrangea

My beautiful hydrangea developed large dark spots on leaves and blooms. I am not sure what went wrong.

Black Spots on Hydrangea

Hi Susan,

There are a few different fungal diseases that can cause spotting on hydrangea leaves, including black spot, powdery mildew, and cercospora. They will not kill the shrub, but it is good to try to control spread. Treating any of them includes removing diseased leaves from the plant and the soil. Once the soil surface is clean, put down (and maintain) a very thick layer of compost mulch to suppress disease spores, which are airborne. Then, follow instructions on how and when to apply neem oil.