How to Get Hydrangeas to Bloom

Hydrangeas are beautiful when they bloom in spring and summer. However, sometimes they don’t bloom the way you want them to. Hydrangea flowers can be finicky, but taking care of your plant's needs increases your chances of getting to experience an amazing bloom. Most problems are issues of watering, sunlight, and soil quality. Proper pruning also helps, and remember to protect plants from harsh weather and pests. Care for your hydrangeas and you will likely end up with stunning blossoms to admire.

EditSteps

EditSelecting a Good Planting Spot

1. Place hydrangeas where they'll receive 4 to 6 hours of direct sunlight a day. The best spots are ones that receive most of this sunlight in the early morning hours. Watch your yard to see which spots the sun shines on throughout the day. If your plant looks healthy but still isn’t blooming, it might not be getting enough sun. Most hydrangeas won’t bloom at all in the shade.^[1]
   
   • Hydrangeas are somewhat delicate when it comes to sunlight, so too much sun can burn them. If your plant has brown scorch marks on its leaves and blooms, move it to a cooler area.
2. Plant hydrangeas away from big trees and other plants. Big trees are a double threat to hydrangeas since they cast plenty of shade and take up a lot of water. If your hydrangeas won’t bloom, take a look at their neighbors. Place them on the edges of shade cast by tall trees. Otherwise, create a separate space in the garden for them or pair them with other plants that won’t overpower them.^[2]
   
   • If you're building a big garden, grow healthy hydrangeas near plants that bloom at the same time. Some examples include foxglove, dogwood, heucherella, and various types of shrubs.
3. Keep hydrangeas in fertile but well-drained soil. Test your soil by digging a hole and filling it with water. If it drains within 5 to 15 minutes, then your soil is fine for flowers. Even though hydrangeas drink up a lot of water, too much of it leads to root rot and plants that won’t bloom.^[3]
   
   • Organic compost causes waterlogged soil to drain faster. Purchase some compost, peat moss, or something similar from a gardening center. Mix it into the soil after digging out your hydrangea.
   • If you’re stuck dealing with pools of water over your soil, try building a raised planting bed. Build a frame out of wood, then fill it with a sandy loam from a gardening center.
4. Take a sample of the soil to test its pH. Purchase a testing kit at a home improvement store and mix a sample of your soil with a little bit of water to perform a litmus test. The soil pH affects how your hydrangeas bloom. Aim for a pH between 5 and 8 depending on what color of bloom you are aiming for. As long as the soil doesn’t have an extreme pH like 3 or 10, then it won’t stop hydrangeas from blooming.^[4]
   
   • Many hydrangeas produce a rainbow of blooms depending on the pH. Aim for a pH of 5.5 or lower to get blue flowers and 6.5 or higher for pink and red flowers. Anything between that is likely to produce purple.
   • White hydrangeas, such as French hydrangeas, don’t change no matter what the pH is. If you have a white hydrangea that doesn’t bloom, the problem isn’t the soil pH unless it is unusually low or high.
5. Amend the soil to change the pH to a safe level if it's too high or low. Compost, coffee grounds, and other organic materials are great ways to adjust the soil. Spread them around hydrangeas to gradually [[Lower Soil pH|lower the pH. Raise the pH by adding wood ash, lime, or some fertilizers. Bring the pH to a safe level in order to get the blooms you desire.^[5]
   
   • Use fertilizers high in phosphorus to make the soil more alkaline and encourage pink blooms. A 25-10-10 fertilizer works well. The numbers are the ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, respectively.

EditWatering and Protecting Hydrangeas

1. Water hydrangeas about 3 times a week to keep the roots moist. Hydrangeas are notorious water hogs. Several times a week, use a hose to spray the water around the soil instead of directly onto the plant. Add it in the morning to keep the soil cool and moist throughout the day. Then, let the water soak in for up to half an hour before testing the soil again.
   
   • Test the soil every day by sticking your finger in it. If it feels dry, add water to keep the soil loose and moist. You may need to water your plants once every 2 days during hot, dry summers.^[6]
   • Some hydrangeas burn through water more quickly than others. Bigleaf and smooth hydrangeas are the ones that drink up the most water.
   • You'll need to add about of water a week to the soil.^[7]
   • Moist soil feels loose and wet but not soggy. It sticks to your finger or any tools you push into it. As long as it doesn’t feel bone dry, your hydrangeas will be fine.
2. Apply a balanced fertilizer at least once a year. All you need is a basic gardening fertilizer with a number rating like 12-4-8. The numbers represent the ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in the fertilizer, respectively. Spread this fertilizer around each hydrangea at a rate of per of ground in late May or early June. Mix it up to deep into the soil to keep your hydrangeas healthy.^[8]
   
   • The 12-4-8 fertilizer balance is low in phosphorus, so it is good for encouraging the unique blue blooms some hydrangeas get. If you're looking for red or pink blooms, choose something with more phosphorus, such as a 25-10-10 fertilizer.
   • Another option is to use a fast-release 10-10-10 fertilizer. Sprinkle it on the soil in May and again in July. If you don’t normally use fertilizer and notice yellow spots on the leaves, a quick application of fertilizer can save the hydrangea.^[9]
   • Adding too much fertilizer can damage hydrangeas. You may see your plants begin to wilt and burn like they would after receiving too much sun.
   • If you add the fertilizer after August, your plants will become too soft to survive the winter. Even though it could help you get some nice blooms during the season, it isn’t worth it for the next growing season.
3. Spread a layer of mulch in the spring. Mulch is important for insulating your plants from heat, cold, and water loss. Get an organic mulch and add it before each hydrangea begins blooming. Keep the mulch about from the stems to prevent them from rotting. Then, let your hydrangeas grow until the next season.^[10]
   
   • Add a new layer of mulch every spring to ensure your hydrangeas have a chance to bloom. Remember to water the soil thoroughly after adding mulch.
   • Some good mulch choices to look out for include pine needles and bark. These types make soil a little more acidic, which helps hydrangeas bloom.
4. Spray a deer repellant onto hydrangeas to drive away pests. Look out for barren hydrangeas if you live in an area with a lot of deer! Many times, hungry deer are the reason why a healthy hydrangea doesn’t seem to bloom. Get a repellent from a gardening center and spray it onto the plant’s leaves and stem every 30 days.^[11]
   
   • Deer netting is an option to drape over your plants. It works best in winter since hydrangeas will break through it as they grow during the warmer months.
   • Deer tend to stay away from oakleaf and climbing hydrangeas, so these types are great options if you’re in an area with lots of hungry deer.
5. Treat hydrangeas with fungicides to eliminate diseases. Most of the time, sunlight and water stop hydrangeas from blooming, but there are a few diseases that could affect your plants. Look for unusual colored spots on the leaves and flowers. Green, yellow, and brown spots are some common signs that require you to purchase a fungicide from the gardening center to spray on the infected area.^[12]
   
   • For example, white mildew spots are treatable. Brown spots and tan rings come from other funguses.
   • In addition to applying a fungicide, take care of your hydrangea’s needs. Many funguses come from excess moisture. Make sure you water your plants appropriately and provide plenty of air circulation.
   • If you aren’t able to treat a disease, get rid of the infected plant as soon as possible to prevent the disease from spreading. Dead or dying plants that look badly discolored often aren’t salvageable and can ruin any other hydrangeas you have.

EditPruning Hydrangeas

1. Use a visual guide if you don’t know what type of hydrangeas you have. Most people don’t realize there are so many different types of hydrangeas. Knowing what kind you have can help you better care for your plants and choose the right time to bust out your gardening shears. In general, there are several main types of hydrangeas commonly grown in gardens. They are easy to identify by appearance.^[13]
   
   • Bigleaf hydrangeas are the most common type. They have big leaves at least long and often have big, puffy flowers. Mophead and lacecap hydrangeas are a few examples.
   • Smooth hydrangeas like the Annabelle variety grow over tall and can tolerate hotter climates. Annabelle hydrangeas have those big snowball flowers that grow thick.
   • Panicle hydrangeas like the PeeGee have large, cone-shaped flowers. They are more resistant to cold weather than other types. They are often very large, as in tree height.
   • Like the name suggests, oakleaf hydrangeas have the same star-shaped leaves as oak trees. The leaves also turn colors in the fall. These plants have white, cone-shaped flowers.
   • A climbing hydrangea is a type of vine. It spreads slowly but produces tiny, white flowers that are ball-shaped like lacecaps.
2. Let the hydrangea grow out to figure out when it blooms. If you’re still unsure when your plant blooms, leave it alone for a full season. Hydrangeas are relatively low-maintenance and don’t need a lot of pruning. Watch the plant to see which buds turn into flowers. It could come either from last year’s buds or on the new growth.^[14]
   
   • Hydrangeas that bloom on old wood form buds at the end of the growing season in autumn and bloom in early spring.
   • Hydrangeas that bloom on new wood develop buds in early spring and bloom by autumn.
3. Prune away old stems on plants that bloom late in the year. If your hydrangea flowers on old wood, it makes new flowers on any branches left to grow for a year. Wait for the blooms to fade around late summer or early fall. Then, use a pair of gardening shears to remove weak or damaged stems. Cut these stems all the way to the ground to give the new stems plenty of space to grow and make more vibrant flowers next year.^[15]
   
   • Bigleaf, or French, hydrangeas work this way. They don’t need much pruning, so trim good stems back to the first healthy buds. Remove the flowers as they fade by the end of the growing season.
   • You can cut off approximately ⅓ of the plant’s stems to make it grow back stronger next year.
   • Oakleaf hydrangeas also bloom on old wood but don’t need much pruning. Remove damaged branches and shape it after the flowers begin fading.
4. Trim plants with early blooms before they begin growing in spring. Smooth and panicle hydrangeas bloom on new wood. Take care of these plants in late winter or early spring before they wake up. Try removing weaker and damaged branches to keep the plant strong and shapely. The new growth will end up making flowers during the growing season.^[16]
   
   • These types of hydrangeas are extra hearty, so you could even cut them down to the ground and still end up with new flowers during the growing season.
   • There are also some newer types of hydrangeas that bloom multiple times a year. You can trim these repeaters as needed throughout the growing season, starting in early spring. Cut faded flower stems to half their length and wait to prune branches until the last bloom in autumn.

EditTips

• A lot of bigger hydrangeas, including the popular Annabelle variety, have heavy flowers. Tying the stems to stakes can help prevent them from sagging.^[17]
• New hydrangeas can take as long as 5 years to bloom. If you’re looking for something quicker, choose bigger, more mature, or flowering hydrangeas from a gardening center.^[18]
• Try to pick a hydrangea that is the right size for your garden in order to reduce the amount of pruning you have to do.
• Hydrangeas can be grown in pots, which allows you to move them to better growing spots if needed.
• Keep in mind that late frosts can damage hydrangea buds and prevent them from blooming. If your hydrangea begins growing before your area gets hit by a sudden chill, it could lose all its buds.

EditThings You’ll Need

EditSelecting a Good Planting Spot

• pH testing kit
• Shovel
• Water
• Compost or other amendments

EditWatering and Protecting Growing Hydrangeas

• 10-30-10 slow-release fertilizer
• Soaking hose or drip irrigator
• Pine mulch
• Deer repellant (optional)
• Fungicide (optional)

EditPruning Hydrangeas

• Gardening gloves
• Pruning shears
• Visual identification guide (optional)

EditReferences

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