Hydrangea Quandry

[Shortie]

I've had a search on old threads and found nought, but apols if this has been questioned before...

My Mum has just presented me with a Hydrangea in an attempt to help me fill my entremely sparse flower garden.. Now, I had one in my old house (clay soil) and it never died, but never looked lovely either...

This soil isn't clay (no idea what it is, not clay, not chalk, so whatever the alternative is) but wondered if anyone had pointers for me so I could hopefully achieve the huge, multi flowered plant that my Nan used to have many moons ago....?

Cheers all

[Jaxom]

Hydrangeas like acid soil and plenty of water. Dig in loads of vegetable matter when you plant it and feed with an ericatious feed. I feed mine every month from March to August.
Jax

[Lesley Jay]

There is a marvellous, huge hydrangea in my son's garden. The previous owners told him to cut it right back at the end of autumn and it looks great every year.

[sewer rat]

There's an old guy across the road from me who grows loads of hydrangeas in big pots and barrels and he has a totally fantastic display every year. He does as LJ suggests and cuts it back hard (and I mean hard) in the autumn.

[nick the grief]

they can look good with the frost on the old mop head but if your not arty farty treat it like an autumn raspberry! my mums was a picture at her bungalow. when she died the people that moved it dug it up & burnt it & now it has beautiful block paving for there son to park on

[Alice]

Hello Shortie, What kind of Hyndrangea is it, for the he different varieties need pruned at different times of the year. Also Hydrangeas are not fully hardy but frost tolerant to about -5 degrees so micro climate really can come in to play. I find the lacecaps which are really lovely much more reliable than the mop heads which I find very susceptible to weather and conditions although I see them running riot in other gardens. Comes back to my argument about micro climates - they love you or they don't. I leave the spent flowers on over the winter to protect the new buds and prune them lightly about this time of year. Well I would if we could get above freezing!!!!!!

[SueA]

I have a hydrangea in a large pot outside which started life as a houseplant many moons ago. They prefer acid soil & will change colour unless they have acid soil & some people give them special hydrangea 'colour food' to keep them blue. Mine was blue originally but is now pink as I haven't dosed it up with anything! I leave the mop heads on over winter as they look pretty with frost on them & just trim them off to a new bud early spring. I suppose if you grow them in the ground you need to cut them back harder as the others say. Mine is left outside all year round & doesn't seem to mind the frost & snow.