Why didn't my Hydrangeas bloom?

June 27, 2011

Hydrangea

This is the most asked garden question, really!  The answer is one of two things:

(a) You pruned it in the fall and cut off the already formed buds.  Most pruning should be done in late winter/early spring for larger species, or right after the first bloom period (June) for others.

(b) This is the plant that "would rather live in Philadelphia!" (or any other Zone 6 location).  The problem isn't our lowest winter temperatures here, but rather the common, late killing frosts in April and May, when the formed buds were already full of moisture and fattened up and then—Zap!—they were frozen and killed off.  So no flowers.  What to do?  You can cover them when freezing nights are in the forecast, with a sheet, tarp or Shrub Coat product designed for that purpose... or you can just replace them with a more dependable, new hydrangea that does not have such tender buds.