Together with farmer's hydrangeas, they are among the most popular hydrangea species. They decorate the garden and delight the hobby gardener's eye with their impressive flower buds. So that the ornamental shrubs can produce their magnificent flowers, pruning plays an important role. In contrast to the farmer's hydrangea, this falls on the panicle hydrangea in spring. We explain when exactly the right time is and what else you should consider when cutting your panicle hydrangea.
Pruning panicle hydrangea: Pruning is due in spring
In contrast to the farmer's hydrangeas, the panicle hydrangea blooms on this year's wood. This means that the old shoots can be cut back without hesitation. All the more so - removing the flower shoots early is actually necessary because this promotes flower formation.
Spring is the right time for pruning. This gives the shrub enough time to recover and store enough nutrients to later form large flower buds. Any delay will affect the flowering period. As a rule, the later you do itHydrangea cutting, the later it starts producing flowers. The flowering time can be delayed until August. In the end, the plant will either bloom for a short time or freeze because it was unable to prepare for the cold.
As far as the weather is concerned, you don't have to worry about permanent frost. Panicle hydrangeas are frost hardy and tolerate pruning quite well. This should best be done in mid-February. Cutting woody plants is permitted until the end of the month; from the beginning of March, only maintenance cuts are permitted.
What should you pay attention to when pruning?
There are a few things to consider when pruning the panicle hydrangea. You should cut the bush so that it retains its shape when it sprouts again. Proceed as follows:
- First check whether the tree is healthy. Weak, diseased, inward-growing shoots are removed immediately.
- The healthy old shoots are cut off close to the ground. Cut them back to a pair of buds.
- The healthy shoots in the middle are cut back to three pairs of buds. This will ensure that the shrub retains its typical shape in spring.
- It is best to choose a cloudy or sunny day for pruning.
- Try to keep the interfaces dry over the next few days. To achieve this, you can cover the shrub with fleece to protect it from rain.
- Cut the shoots at an angle so that the water can drain away and the interfaces remain dry.
- You can cut the tree even at sub-zero temperatures,it is very frost resistantand won't freeze to death.
Thin out the panicle hydrangea in spring
Pruning encourages vigorous new sprouting. Sometimes the hydrangea produces so many new shoots that they compete heavily for resources (light, water and nutrients). Because the large leaves are too close together, the hydrangea can only dry slowly after a rain. The shoots in the middle are poorly ventilated. The result is rot - and this promotes the formation of mold and pest infestation. To prevent this, you should thin out the hydrangea every year.
Also interesting:Pruning panicle hydrangeas: 3 mistakes to avoid
When thinning out, the weak shoots in particular are cut off at ground level. In addition, shoots growing inwards or directly upwards are removed. You try to keep the shape of the bush. So if two shoots are too close to each other, cut one back and completely remove the other. Fortunately, the panicle hydrangea forgives cutting errors and can recover after a year, even with heavy thinning.
Thinning should only be carried out when necessary and not annually. In principle, it is sufficient if you thin out the flowering bush every two to three years.
Cut panicle hydrangeas and care for them properly after pruning
What is specific to the panicle hydrangea is that it needs some time to recover after being pruned. The period from February to April is perfect for this. The first leaves will only appear at the beginning of spring. Until then, patience is required. During the rest period in spring, the trees do not need any special care. Only after the first new leaves appear can you use them again
Plant young plants in the garden
If you propagated the hydrangea from cuttings at the end of summer, the young plants should be planted outdoors in mid to late February. This means they still have two months to develop their roots before the leaves begin to form. If you have kept the plants on the windowsill, they will need some time to adjust to the weather outside. First put them in an unheated room for a few days. Then take them outside for a few hours each day. After a week you can plant them out. A windbreak makes sense, at least in the first few weeks.
Also read:How and when you should prune the viburnum hydrangea
