dj5800
Newly Registered
Posts: 1
Joined: Sat Jun 25, 2011 8:37 am
Location: wisconsin

Wilting snowball hydrangea

4 years ago we planted 10 snowball hydrangea plants on the south side of our home. They, and the hasta have thrived! But, one plant last year suddenly wilted and stopped growing, never budding. Now this year the plants are again thriving. 3 + ft and starting to get buds. But again, a different plant is wilting. Any ideas what this is? Btw, the I'll plant from last year is better. Not as tall as the other 8 plants and not as many buds. Any help would be great. Thanks

luis_pr
Greener Thumb
Posts: 824
Joined: Sun Jul 05, 2009 8:31 am
Location: Hurst, TX USA Zone 7b/8a

Hello, dj5800. Wilting is a common response in large leafed plants to conditions where the plant looses moisture through the leaves faster than they can absorb it through the roots. By reducing the area of the leaves in direct contact with the sun, moisture loss is somewhat reduced.

Hydrangeas normally do this more often as the summer temperatures and lack of moisture arrive. They can also wilt on windy days so I sometimes water them the day before I hear Wind Advisories on the news.

The thing about these wilting episodes is that as long as the soil remains moist, the hydrangeas should recover by next morning. The following steps may help you out...

If you see an extreme wilting episode, water the plants immediately starting with the root ball and moving away towards the drip line. Otherwise, insert a finger into the soil to a depth of 4" and water if the soil feels dry or almost dry.

I normally recommend about one gallon of water on a newly planted hydrangea but, on a four year old, you may need more. And that brings me to another suggestion. If during the last 4 years you have continued watering the plants the same amount of water, consider increasing that since they are 4 years bigger above and below the ground.

Keeping them mulched with 3-4" of mulch can minimize frequent waterings and lost moisture during the summer months. As always, it is best to water deeply than water often. If unsure when to water, use the finger method again. It also helps you not water too often, which leads to root rot.

Purplehaze13
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Posts: 8
Joined: Sat Jun 25, 2011 2:32 pm
Location: Virginia Beach, VA

Thanks for the tip about testing the soil before watering. I just moved into a new house, and there are over a dozen hydrangas in various locations around the yard. I have NO gardening experience at all, so have been trying to read up on how to care for them. We've been having very hot weather in southern Virginia latley, and the ones that get the most sun have been wilting. The plants in the front have drip irrigation but the ones in the back I have to water by hand. Most of the plants seem to recover from the heat after watering, however some of them have blossoms that have turned brown, even black in a couple places. Should I take these blooms off? I am worried about damaging the plants and want to make sure I don't lose any. Any advice would be greatly apprecitaed!

luis_pr
Greener Thumb
Posts: 824
Joined: Sun Jul 05, 2009 8:31 am
Location: Hurst, TX USA Zone 7b/8a

Blossoms can suffer from moisture problems and turn brown as a result. As a matter of fact, blooms and flower buds are the first things that the plant aborts when they do not have enough water.

You can deadhead the blooms at any time. If you do that, reblooming hydrangeas may have another go at blooming, maybe two more depending where you live.

Deadheading is not the same as pruning. For more information, see the section titled "Removing Old Blooms" on the link below:

https://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/pruning.html



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