Prune a hydrangea tree

How And When To Prune Hydrangea Trees

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Hydrangeas

By: Teo Spengler

Image by Olga Seifutdinova

Once you’ve had a hydrangea in the landscape, it’s hard to imagine the garden without these versatile workhorse shrubs. One of the most popular hydrangeas is panicle hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata) that can grow into a small, flowering tree.

Like all hydrangeas, popular panicle cultivars like Pee Gee and Limelight are fairly low maintenance in the backyard. However, pruning is recommended to keep them looking tidy and compact. Don’t do it wrong or you may lose all of the flowers for the year. Read on for tips on how to trim a hydrangea tree.

Pruning a Hydrangea Tree

Panicle hydrangea is a flowering shrub that, left to its own devices, will grow to 25 feet (8 m.) tall and almost as wide in an irregular vase shape. The creamy white summer flowers are exceptionally showy to the point of being spectacular. They appear in panicles of blossoms some 6-8 inches (15-20 cm.) long. As summer wanes, the petals fade to a pink-purple shade.

The tree has upright, spreading branches that appear “weeping” as they are weighted down by the blossoms. Many gardeners opt to deadhead the faded flowers and clip off the brown fruits to keep the plant looking shapely. It’s important to get the timing right to avoid a blossom-less hydrangea the following summer.

When to Prune a Hydrangea Tree

If you decide to go ahead and prune your Limelight into a neat shape, the time to act is early spring, before the plant’s spring growth begins. That’s very important given the panicle hydrangea’s growth pattern.

This species of hydrangea sets its flowers on new wood, that is, wood produced in spring of the same year rather than the wood that grew in the prior autumn. You are therefore safe to prune right up through the time the panicle tree hydrangea starts growing again in spring. Pruning after that will remove the newly set flower buds and result in fewer blossoms – or none! – that summer.

How to Prune a Hydrangea Tree

Pruning a ‘Limelight’ hydrangea tree or any other panicle hydrangea tree, you don’t have to act too gently or too conservatively. These are tough, resilient plants that love to push out new growth whether or not a trim was perfectly accomplished. On the other hand, the idea is to keep this beautiful, reliable hydrangea looking like a tree, not to try to turn it into a shrub.

Start with the basic housecleaning type of pruning, removing sucker shoots that grow in around the plant base, then trim off any shoots appearing on the lower part of the trunk. A hydrangea tree looks best with one trunk, a trunk that is bare up to where the canopy begins.

At the canopy, work branch by branch, clipping each to leave only two or three sets of bud nodes. This will prevent overly long branches that end and even break as the big flowers appear on the branch tips.

At the same time, look for spots where there are several branches coming from the same area on the trunk and crowding each other Cut one right back at the main trunk. Finally, look for small branches heading straight up or toward the inside of the canopy. Cut those back to the trunk or main branch from which they are growing.

This article was last updated on 10/20/22

Hydrangea Tree Care | Plant Addicts

The Hydrangea Tree

Of all the small, flowering trees, hydrangea trees are the most dramatic when in full bloom. In addition, they are easy to grow in almost all parts of the U.S. (except frost free areas), and they will bloom dependably year after year.

Hydrangea trees do not naturally grow into the shape of a tree. Left to their own devices, all hydrangeas will grow into shrubs with multiple stems. The only type hydrangea that can be made into a tree is Hydrangea paniculata. Nurseries prune them into single trunk trees when they are very young. Paniculatas dependably bloom on new growth every year in mid-summer, and the show is spectacular.

Planting

Planting the hydrangea tree properly is the key to its success. It should be planted in a location that receives at least four hours of sun a day for most of the spring and summer. It can thrive in full sun, but the blooms may last longer if they are in some shade during the hottest part of the day. Like most plants, it does best in moist but well-drained soil. It should not be planted too deeply. It should be planted at the same level as it was in the pot. The first year it is planted, the little tree should be watched carefully, and the soil should not be allowed to dry out.

If you purchase a hydrangea from the nursery already in tree form, you should provide extra bracing & support for the tree the first year or two. This will help the tree remain upright in strong windstorms, and ensure the tree grows straight up instead of sideways. This can easily be done with 2 or 3 posts in the ground that are attached to the tree with string. So the tree can't flex sideways as far.

Pruning

Pruning may be the concern of many who grow this plant. Fortunately, pruning a paniculata will not cause any problems with blooming. It can be pruned at any time of the year except when blooms are forming on the tips of the branches in early to mid-summer. Bloom formation is easy to see if one looks carefully, even in the early stages. These trees can be left to grow naturally, or they may be pruned to control their shape.

After they have finished blooming in July or August, any branches growing across other branches may be removed. (I try to prune so that all branches are radiating toward the outside of the tree, rather than growing across the middle of the tree and across other branches.) The finished blooms may be removed at any time if the tree is small enough for one to reach the blooms. However, some people like to leave the blooms on the tree for winter interest, especially in areas where they can look lovely with snow on them.

Winter Care

Some people do cut the dead blooms off in the winter, so snow doesn’t weigh the branches down and break them off. Also, add a couple of inches of mulch around the base to help hold moisture in and insulate the roots. You can also wrap the ‘trunk’ with newspaper, felt, burlap, or a tree guard loosely to shield it from the wind. It also provides some protection from deer during the winter, when the deer are the hungriest. This probably isn’t necessary unless you live in an area with a very harsh winters or the first year or two after planting.

Beautiful Varieties

While any variety of Hydrangea paniculata may be grown as a tree, the most common variety planted at this time is ‘Limelight.’ The blooms on ‘Limelight’ are huge and can be seen from a great distance. Our favorite is the Vanilla Strawberry tree.

-A big thank you to our friend and renowned hydrangea expert Judith King for helping us write this article.

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Proper hydrangea pruning: the subtleties and nuances of

Lush and proud hydrangea, pleasing to the eye with its luxurious flowers, can decorate any garden. But in order for the bush to look aesthetic and attractive, it needs periodic pruning.

We will tell you when and how to do it, how spring pruning differs from autumn pruning, and how best to do this procedure in autumn.

Timing and types of hydrangea pruning

Hydrangea pruning is carried out both in spring and autumn. Spring is the time for cardinal haircuts and the formation of a bush. And at the end of the season, when nature falls asleep, and the plants are preparing for winter, there is no need to radically cut hydrangeas. Now it is important for us to thin out the bush and free it from diseased, dried and improperly growing shoots. nine0003

Autumn pruning is carried out late, usually after leaf fall, because in September the plant changes color and is as beautiful and charming as in summer.

There are several types of correct pruning for hydrangeas.

Traditional annual pruning in order to obtain a stronger and more abundantly flowering plant.
Formative pruning, which allows you to give the bush the desired configuration and optimally position the skeletal branches.
Finally, the rejuvenation of hydrangeas with cardinal pruning, which is carried out on aging or badly damaged bushes.

Features of autumn pruning of hydrangeas

Although the main part of the work takes place in the spring, pruning of hydrangeas in the autumn is also obligatory. It is needed in order to divide all the work on the formation and improvement of the plant into two periods. In this case, the hydrangea will endure the entire procedure safely. nine0003

When pruning hydrangeas in autumn, you need to pay attention to old, damaged branches, as well as those that grow inside the bush. They are removed, but young shoots are not touched in the fall. Also, shoots are cut almost to the ground, which for some reason were broken in the summer.

The air temperature during this period should be plus 5-10 degrees. For different regions, this is the beginning - the end of October.

The further north the region is located, the more gentle pruning of the plant should be in autumn, since hydrangea does not like severe frosts, and shortened branches will be less protected from cold temperatures. This is especially true of large-leaved hydrangea, which is thermophilic. The remaining species are considered relatively frost-resistant. nine0003

Important! It is not customary (especially in cold regions) to carry out autumn pruning of the plant for the first three years, since the seedling needs strength to withstand and survive the adverse winter conditions. During this period, only forced sanitary cleaning is done.

In the southern regions in autumn, you can act more decisively with the expectation of the next year. Experts believe that in warm climates, autumn pruning is even more preferable.

All varieties of hydrangeas have their own specifics for autumn pruning. nine0003

Peculiarities of hydrangea pruning by species

All varieties of hydrangeas have their own specifics of autumn pruning.

Paniculata hydrangea. The shrub blooms on the shoots of the current year, so don't be afraid to accidentally cut off a branch with flower buds. In autumn, you need to remove flower stalks, cut off dry and lodging branches.
Tree hydrangea. This species also blooms on the current year's shoots. The rules of the autumn haircut coincide with the pruning of the paniculate hydrangea. It is necessary to remove flower stalks, cut out dubious, broken and dry branches. nine0018

Let's dwell separately on pruning large-leaved hydrangea. The haircut of this beauty in the fall should be carried out carefully, remembering that she blooms on the shoots of last year. That is, right now we can accidentally cut off all the future beauty.

All the large-leaved hydrangea needs now is the removal of peduncles and unproductive branches. It is necessary to cut out all damaged and dry shoots, because in snowy winters they quickly break and injure the bush. If the branches grow inward or cross, they are also removed. nine0003

In northern regions, hydrangeas should be covered after pruning. How to do it right - we will tell in the following publications. In the meantime, we invite you to look at the hydrangeas in our assortment. Large-leaved, paniculate, tree-like, oak-leaved - the choice is very large! The seedlings are delivered in containers and are well tolerated by shipping.

Author of the article: Oksana Artemenko

Published: 21 Sep 2020

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terms, principles, rules and a detailed video from our specialist.

Hydrangea is a versatile shrub that many have been growing in the garden for decades, but not everyone knows how to properly prune hydrangeas, whether the techniques depend on the species, and what time of the year is best to devote time to this process.

Many people ask the question: is it necessary to cut the hydrangea?

If in all the years of the existence of this shrub on your site you have never approached it with a pruner, then we can say with all confidence that you have never seen this particular variety in all its glory! It is the correct pruning that helps abundant flowering, prevents the inflorescences from shrinking and provokes the correct development of the crown. With timely top dressing and good watering, the very next year after pruning, you literally won’t recognize your hydrangea and will be able to feel all the magic of transformation! nine0003

When should hydrangeas be pruned?

Like all fruit or ornamental crops, hydrangea will require attention at a time when the plant has already prepared for winter or when it has not yet had time to wake up after it. There are many opinions about the correct timing for such events, but we recommend pruning twice: in the fall and in the spring. At the end of the summer season, there are already a lot of worries, but it still makes sense to allocate quite a bit of time for your favorite shrub, because in winter, under a decent weight of snow cover, fragile shoots can break or even break. Even if the shrub does not die (and this is possible), then its decorative effect can be seriously affected. Therefore, we make gentle pruning in the fall, and when the snow melts, even before the start of sap flow, we will carefully correct our own sections or even cut them into a kidney. It is worth mentioning that some people prefer not to cut, but tightly tie the shoots together for the winter, but this is done, as a rule, so that the shoots cut off in the spring can be used as cuttings for propagating shrubs. nine0003

Which types of hydrangea should be pruned in autumn and spring?

Only those that bloom on the shoots of the current year. They definitely do not include most varieties of large-leaved hydrangea, which grows twigs for a whole season, so that next year they will be crowned with unearthly beauty inflorescences. By making an autumn or spring pruning of shoots that have not yet bloomed, you will not destroy them, but you will only wait for flowering in a season. Paniculate, tree-like, oak-leaved and rough hydrangeas can be pruned every year, forming a crown and stimulating the growth of new shoots. nine0003

Hydrangea pruning in autumn

When the leaves on the shrub have already turned yellow, or maybe they have fallen off, when the charming inflorescences have begun to dry out, changing color to brownish - it's time to take up the pruner! Tree hydrangea pruning, like panicle hydrangea pruning, has the same principle, despite the fact that these species have a different bush shape and grow according to their own rules. It is important to understand the essence of the process. We simply shorten the shoots to the second, third, fourth or even fifth bud from the base, regardless of whether it grows from a branch or directly from the ground, like a tree hydrangea. The main nuances to consider when pruning hydrangeas: nine0003

- we form a neat hemispherical shape of the shrub, for which it is possible to cut the outer shoots a little shorter than those that come out of the middle of the crown;

- it is best to do autumn pruning for 3-4 buds, so that in the spring, in case of damage to the shoot, it would be possible to cut the branch stronger;

- Quite often, at the very base of tree-like hydrangeas, you can see one or even two buds very close to each other. We count the buds for pruning the shoot already above, without taking them into account. Having made a strong pruning of the shrub, we risk waking up these low buds, and then from the very base a strong thickening of the crown can result, which will negatively affect both the health and the decorative effect of the hydrangea. nine0003

- if the declared height of the hydrangea bush of your chosen variety is from two to four meters, then the distances between the buds will be large (from 10 to 20 centimeters), which means that pruning can be done on the third, and if necessary, on the second kidney. True, do not forget that adjusting the bush in the spring will be more difficult to do if there are too few buds left.

We have prepared a video of pruning hydrangeas in the fall for clarity, and after watching it, you definitely should not have any questions on this topic. nine0003

YouTube video: Hydrangea pruning: timing and rules

In this publication, we have analyzed in detail how to properly cut a hydrangea so that it only pleases with its beauty from year to year, attracting not only your attention, but also the enthusiastic looks of your guests. In fact, if you do not prune this shrub every year, nothing bad will happen to it. The most important thing is to plant in acidified soil, fertilize from time to time and ensure abundant watering. You can buy hydrangea seedlings directly in our online store or choose the variety you like on the trading floor of our garden center in the Moscow region. nine0003

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