What do I do with my hydrangeas for the winter?

they are not in very good shape, but we hope to have them next spring. Do we cut them back? Cover them? Thanks

What do I do with my hydrangeas for the winter?
depends on what kind of hydrangeas they are. If they bloom with pink or blue flowers, then most of them bloom on old wood and should not be cut back. Exceptions are some of the new varieties that bloom on old and new wood, such as Endless Summer. If it is Annabelle, you can cut it to the ground. Here's a guide for pruning the various varieties, since there are so many different types.





Hydrangeas - When To Prune HydrangeasTo complicate the issue, different types of hydrangeas need pruning at different times. You will have to know what type your plant is. ...


gardening.about.com/od/treesshrubs/a/P...





I like to mulch my pink and blue hydrangeas with a good cover of leaves, sometimes they make it with old wood intact to bloom, sometimes not in my unpredictable zone 6b winters.
Reply:Typically, I don't recommend that they are trimmed back until Spring. This provides some insulation for the plant during the Winter. If your particular plants struggled with insects or diseases this past growing season, I would trim them back early. This is the only reason to trim back Hydrangeas now.
Reply:Don't touch them until spring.You can put an extra layer of mulch for a little winter protection.In the spring you can prune off any dead wood.You do not want to prune in the fall-you may be cutting off next years flowers.
Reply:Hi there,





You need to read all of this website so that you will be well informed:


http://www.emmitsburg.net/gardens/articl...





Pruning is the very last paragraph. But you should not prune until you find out what type of shrub you have. You can take a branch with leaves to a nursery and they will be able to tell you.





Happy gardening to you.
Reply:I cut the ones close to my house down to about a foot tall. They put out and bloom fine the next year. The ones further away, I leave alone until they get way too large, then I do the same with them. If you live where it gets very cold, it would be good to mulch around them.

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