Friday, May 21, 2010

Why doesnt my climbing hydrangea flower?

Its in its third year now and although it is growing well no sign at all of any flowers yet!!! Please can anyone tell me what I am doing wrong

Why doesnt my climbing hydrangea flower?
A couple of thoughts. Climbing hydrangea vines are notoriously slow to establish. I wouldn't give up on it yet. Ours is going into its fourth year. It actually had a couple of flowers the first year and nothing since. Our neighbour's didn't flower until about year four.





They need a cold winter to create flower buds. If you live in zone 7 or above, it could be problematic.





They want a very fertile soil. Lots of compost or other organic fertilizer every spring may help.





Hang in there. They're attractive vines, even without the flowers.
Reply:Hydrangeas are really hard to grow, trust me, I have tried for years and years and can't get them to flower. My mum has hundreds in her garden that flower for ages and she doesn't know how she does it! I think it must be the different soil.
Reply:My ortho book says three possibilities: a cold snap after they have buds in the spring: improper trimming, you need to know when your variety produces its buds for its next flowering season, and do not trim after that: too much shade. One more thing, they love acidic soil. You need to feed them Mir-acid by miracle- gro, but if your leaves are large and green then acid is not the problem.
Reply:This plant loves north facing walls and lots of water. If you have planted it on a sunny wall that is dry this may be the problem.
Reply:Try SuperBloom. It makes EVERYTHING bloom, even the stubborn ones.
Reply:Mine is beautiful, ten years old and has always bloomed. (It's blooming now). I do nothing with it. It is planted in a rather sandy soil in Chicago. It gets northeasterly light - never direct sun except in the morning, otherwise it is shaded by a 50 ft Arborvitae and a 40 foot fir. next to it is a Rhododendron that I do fertilize and provide acid for. I have no idea why the hydrangea does well. Maybe it is the cold thing in winter - or the soil. I do add about a shovelful of organic compost each spring. I have several other hydrangeas as well, including the blue ones ( which are difficult in this neck of the woods) - all of them do well with minimum care. I am truly suprised you're having problems.


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