Big Leaf Hydrangeas: A Beginner's Guide to Planting, Growing, Pruning, and Changing Flower Color - Page 2
© Jojo Sigurgeirson
A quicker way to change flower color is through liquid soil drenches. To make the flowers bluer during the growing season, dissolve one tablespoon of alum (aluminum sulfate) in a gallon of water and drench the soil around the plant in March, April and May.
To make the flowers pink, dissolve one tablespoon of hydrated (quick) lime in a gallon of water and drench the soil around the plant in March, April and May. Avoid getting the solution on the leaves because foliar damage may result.
Why do my Hydrangeas not Flower?
This can occur for several reasons:
- frost damage to flower buds
- pruning in late summer
- too much shade
- too much high-nitrogen fertilizer
- plant is not old enough yet
Pruning Hydrangea Plants
Prune big leaf hydrangeas when the flower heads begin to fade. Prune off the flower heads and snip back other shoots to encourage branching and fullness. For a dwarfing effect, prune hard back to the double buds forming on either side of the stem near the base of the plant. Big leaf hydrangeas form their flower buds in late summer for the following year, so pruning in late summer, fall and winter will remove potential flowers.
Making New Hydrangeas (Layering)
- Dig a trench near the plant and bend a section of limb down into it.
- Use a knife to remove a small ring of outer bark about one inch wide all the way around the limb where it contacts the soil.
- Cover the limb with soil, leaving 6 to 12 inches of the tip growth uncovered.
- If layering is done during the summer, the new plant should be ready for transplanting the following winter.
Old, established hydrangeas may also be divided in the early spring, by digging them up and using a shovel to divide the clump, much as you would divide a perennial. This way, several plants can be obtained from one mature clump. Be sure to water the plants in very well, and keep watering all summer.
Hydrangea Links
Pete's Hydrangeas
A really great site from a Hydrangea enthusiast in
The American Hydrangea Society
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