Increase Flowering on Hydrangeas

No flowers on your pink or blue hydrangea? The key to consistent flowering is proper selection, pruning and care.

The bigleaf or mop head hydrangeas, those with pink or blue flowers, only produce blooms on the previous season’s growth.

Severe pruning at the wrong time and cold winters that kill the stems back to the ground can reduce or eliminate bloom.  Only prune dead and damaged stems to the ground in early spring.  Wait and prune flowering stems back to a set of healthy buds right after flowering. 

Endless Summer and other repeat blooming bigleaf hydrangeas are supposed to bloom on new and old growth. Moisture and proper fertilization are keys to success with these.

Or try one of the Annabelle cultivars, like Invincibelle Spirit or Bella Anna, that are hardier and produce pink flowers on new growth.

A bit more information: Make sure the soil is moist, not wet from spring through summer to encourage flowering on the repeat blooming hydrangeas. Apply an organic fertilizer, like Milorganite once in spring. Research found that when the microorganisms work on releasing the nutrients from Milorganite, they also make some of the soil bound phosphorous available to the plants. This helps promote flowering.

Tags

prune shrubs hydrangea smooth-hydrangea bigleaf-hydrangea

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