If you’re scouting for a winter-hardy addition to your garden, look no further than the robust hydrangea.
Known for their resilience in chilly climates, and impervious to nippy temperatures or frost, hydrangeas present an array of forms from lush mounds to elegant cones.
Despite their fortitude during the frosty season, these plants will shed most of their vibrancy, with remaining flowers often becoming dry and tan in colour. They do demand a measure of upkeep when it’s cold, and one virtuoso has divulged his wisdom on nurturing them.
Ben Hayman, green-fingered expert at Hoselink, explains in a TikTok how proper pruning gives hydrangeas “spectacular blooms” and fosters a “healthier” growth cycle. Ben unveils tips for sculpting hydrangea paniculata – a favourite among the species – saying: “Today I’m going to show you how to prune and get masses of flowers on your panicle hydrangeas, or as you may know them, hydrangea paniculata.”
He praises these particular ones for their striking cone-shaped blossoms that dazzle both in gardens and floral compositions. “These are the ones with the big cone-like flowers that look just as stunning in the garden as they do in any flower arrangement. We prune these guys in winter to early spring – and they’re really easy to prune they flower on the coming year’s growth.”
In the instructional TikTok clip, Ben highlights that expunging dead, damaged and diseased portions is the vital first step. Once that’s completed, it’s time to sculpt the plant into a sturdy structural form. The next step is to thin out the dense area which will allow light and airflow into the centre of the plant. After this, you will need to tackle the height of the plant.
The aim should be to reduce it to 30 to 40cm from the ground, this will promote new growth. In the TikTok, he said to make sure to prune just above a double bud to ensure “as many flower stems as possible.” If you are worried about getting things wrong, you really should not be according to the expert.
He says one of the best things about this type of hydrangea is that you can prune it above rot or below that 30 to 40cm guide and it won’t matter. Ben said: “Basically, you can’t get it wrong as it flowers on new wood. So that’s it, one of the easiest jobs in the garden done, and I bet you it was nowhere near as scary as you thought.”
Get email updates with the day’s biggest stories
