Katie_89
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Joined: Tue Apr 25, 2017 11:26 pm

New to Hydrangea planting/care

Hello all!!
I'm Katie and have always had a love for hydrangeas so on a whim I bought one!!
I am completely clueless on how to care for it!!

It is a Mathilda Gutges Hydrangea (from the tag thing in the soil) and I will be placing it in a bigger pot instead of the ground since we don't really have a good spot for it in the yard.

Any and all advise is appreciated!!

I just don't know where to begin!! have watched some youtube videos and such but some of the things that confuse me are:
1.) what type of soil to use
2.) how big of a pot to use (am planning on purchasing a 22" pot)
3.) videos have said to use fertilizer and not sure what to use
4.) pruning!! one videology said to cut mature blooms off for new ones to grow??

lol I am just basically lost!! purchased the plant Monday so am looking to get it potted no later than Saturday so get it moving.

Katie_89
Full Member
Posts: 12
Joined: Tue Apr 25, 2017 11:26 pm

Hello all!!
I'm Katie and have always had a love for hydrangeas so on a whim I bought one!!
I am completely clueless on how to care for it!!

It is a Mathilda Gutges Hydrangea (from the tag thing in the soil) and I will be placing it in a bigger pot instead of the ground since we don't really have a good spot for it in the yard.

Any and all advise is appreciated!!

I just don't know where to begin!! have watched some youtube videos and such but some of the things that confuse me are:
1.) what type of soil to use
2.) how big of a pot to use (am planning on purchasing a 22" pot)
3.) videos have said to use fertilizer and not sure what to use
4.) pruning!! one videology said to cut mature blooms off for new ones to grow??

lol I am just basically lost!! purchased the plant Monday so am looking to get it potted no later than Saturday so get it moving.

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rainbowgardener
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Congratulations on finally getting your hydrangea!


One thing to know is that there are several different types of hydrangeas. RE: " pruning!! one videology said to cut mature blooms off for new ones to grow??" That only makes sense if they were talking about one of the "Endless Summer" varieties that reblooms. Your macrophylla (big leaf) hydrangea blooms once in the summer. The blooms are very long lasting, but when they are done, they are done. No new ones will grow until next year.

Hydrangea blooms sort of dry themselves on the bush and will stay on. Many people leave the finished blooms on the hydrangea through the winter for some winter interest in the garden.

Image

Image

If you do that then in very early spring you would cut the old flowers off, cutting back just to the first pair of buds beneath the old flower in spring. Other than that, hydrangea needs very little pruning. Cut off any branches that were winter killed.

I'll let someone else answer the rest of your questions. Luis, our hydrangea expert, will probably be along...

luis_pr
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Hello, Katie. You have taken the first steps in becoming a hydrangea-aholic. Welcome to the forum. To answer your questions, can you tel me in what zone and city/state are you located? Your name in the post does not display this information.

Katie_89
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Joined: Tue Apr 25, 2017 11:26 pm

Located just outside of cleveland ohio

googled it and it said our zone is 5-6

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rainbowgardener
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You have duplicate posts on this same question; makes it confusing. Here's what I put on your other one, so it will all be in one place:

Congratulations on finally getting your hydrangea!


One thing to know is that there are several different types of hydrangeas. RE: " pruning!! one videology said to cut mature blooms off for new ones to grow??" That only makes sense if they were talking about one of the "Endless Summer" varieties that reblooms. Your macrophylla (big leaf) hydrangea blooms once in the summer. The blooms are very long lasting, but when they are done, they are done. No new ones will grow until next year.

Hydrangea blooms sort of dry themselves on the bush and will stay on. Many people leave the finished blooms on the hydrangea through the winter for some winter interest in the garden.

Image

Image

If you do that then in very early spring you would cut the old flowers off, cutting back just to the first pair of buds beneath the old flower in spring. Other than that, hydrangea needs very little pruning. Cut off any branches that were winter killed.

I'll let someone else answer the rest of your questions. Luis, our hydrangea expert, will probably be along...[/quote]

luis_pr
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Ohio? What a coincidence. I was talking about hydrangea hedges and discussing that one could go to the Cincinnati Zoo to see an example of a hedge made using oakleaf hydrangeas. They have one hedge, not too terribly long but it looks nice and in the Fall, when the oakleaf leaves turn colors, it must be very nice.

Mathilda Gutges is a good one but it unfortunately the bad distinction that is one of a few hydrangeas that did not make it for me. I remember getting it at a now defunct plant nursery and planted it in front of a window looking north. I had issues watering it and it did not come back after the first winter. Over here in the Summer/Fall, temperatures get to the 100++ and I basically forgot all about it. I have to monitor these shrubs and provide water by hand when temps rise to the 100s daily and I did not water it. The drip irrigation probably gave it some water but being on its first summer, it probably needed more water and did not get it. Sigh. Mea culpa, not MG's. I therefore suggest that you place the pot in a location where you will not "forget" about the plant either. Regarding your questions...

What type of soil to use... There over 17,254,802 different best types of potting soils out there! I know because the Internet says so! Hee hee hee! But really, you can make your own or use any potting soil that says it is for azaleas, camellias and-or hydrangeas. There are some people who like to make their own potting soil and if you want to control the items used to make it even more well-draining, that is fine as well. Hydrangeas like well-draining, acidic soil that is as evenly moist as possible. Periods of dry soil, followed by wet soil and back to dry again are not good. Have a plan for watering purposes. Now the soil and the plant will not complain but as soon as summer arrives -especially the first summer- the plant may complain so make sure it can whatever water it needs. You can set up and automated irrigation system or just plant to water every few days.

On the first summer, a hydrangea will be fighting what is called transplant shock. It was grown using perfect conditions at a plant wholesaler and now it finds out there is such a thing as summer and wind. Until it develops a large root system, it may suffer from episodes where those big ole leaves loose moisture faster than the roots can uptake moisture from the soil; as a result, the leaves wilt and the plant looks pretty sad. The trick with this is to determine if the soil is dry or not when the leaves wilt. If you insert a finger into the soil to a depth of 2" or use a soil moisture meter and it says the soil is dry then you have to water quickly it so it will recover. But if the soil is moist then you can leave it alone and the leaves will recover on their own by nightfall or by the next morning. If you see that the leaves are browning from the edges inwards instead, it is having some of these dry-wet-dry periods so you either need to water more or more often.

Size of the pot.... some people start with the same plastic pot that the plant came in but since those plastic ones get hot in the summer and the roots do not like it hot, you can start a progression if size until you get to a size appropriate for MG's 5x5. Note that you get those advertised sizes in places where the growing season is long (meaning the South and the coasts) so do not be surprised if growth tops out as 4x4 or so. I happen to have a 12" pot and have used it for starting some mail order hydrangeas that a friend sent me. So I would use a smaller size until the plant gets bigger and needs more room. If you see the roots circling around the pot, that would be a good time to prune the roots and transplant it to a bigger size. Just stop at the right size that you want to use.

The frequent watering makes the fertilizer minerals leach out so need to fertilize more often than if the plant was on the ground. Products like MG can be used, just be aware that they have to be applied often. You can also use general purpose, slow release fertilizers with a NPK Ratio of around 10-10-10. Those will last longer so you do not have reapply every hour. I have on hand a lot of cottonseed meal, organic compost and composted manure most of the time so when I received a batch of a dozen shrubs from my friend, I applied some granular fertilizer (Osmocote 10-10-10) and, later on, I used what I had on-hand: some of all of the others I mentioned. I have a soil test kit that I bought at Lowe's. Pretty cheap and inaccurate but it can flag when the potting mix has little nitrogen, phosphorus or potassium. I would use the test "every now and then" (2-4 weeks?? I can't exactly remember) and was just on the lookout for when the solution turned colors indicating low levels. After a year or so then you get an idea of about how often to apply the fertilizers. Do not forget to add some acidifier compounds too since these will also leach out along with the water. If you notice that the leaves are turning yellow-ish with the leaf veins remaining dark brown, you need to add some of these things. You can use greensand,

Pruning... hydrangeas really do not need pruning if you place them in a location where the shrub can reach its advertised size at maturity (commercial term for "eh, about 10 years or close to that). Some minor pruning is ok: (1) You can prune stems that cross or stems that happen to grow much larger than the others. (2) prune down to the ground any stems that did not leaf out by mid-to-late May. Note that MG develops invisible flower buds at the ends of the stems in July-August (July down here; later north of me) so if you ever need to prune, do it after the plant has bloomed and before the end of June to be safe. Deadheading of the spent blooms can be done at any time but note that deadheading is not the same as pruning. It just means you cut the little string that connects the bloom to the stem. You do not want to cut the stem itself because in winter, it has invisible flower buds at the ends of the stems.

Other stuff:

Mopheads like MG do best in morning sun and after/evening sun so place the pot in a location where you can control this. Especially during the summer. I give the new hydrangeas several days (maybe a week tops) of bright shade before I move it to a place where they got 1-2 hrs of morning sun and then to their final place where they had to get shade by 11am to 12pm. Being up north, you might be able to coax a little more sun but remember that the sun is an issue in the summer, not now in Spring. You can also drive around looking to see where people plant hydrangeas near you to get ideas.

Winter can be a problem for mophead hydrangeas. Those invisible flower buds that they develop in July-August need to survive winter so they open in Spring and so you will get bloomage. So once the plant goes dormant, bring the pot into the garage, basement, shed, etc and water it every week or every two weeks. Of all possible places to put the pot, select the one that gives more protection from cold drying winds and cold temps. Then take it outside in the Spring, about two weeks after your average date of last frost. Very cold temps or lack of water can kill these flower buds during winter. If you notice that the stems did not leaf out by mid-May and that new growth is coming back from the crown, the flower buds at the ends of the stems did not make and there will not be bloomage that year. I just got hit with this problem even though I am in Zone 8a. This last winter was very mild and even though most of my hydrangeas went dormant, many of them started leafing out from the crown back in February (later for you).

Not sure how well MG might do bloom-wise if your zone is Z5 cold though. Zone 6 is starting to push the limits of typical mopheads so the plants needs to be brought inside or people have to put winter protection around the bushes when the plants are grown outside. Mophead hydrangeas that bloom like MG are said to bloom on old wood. But there are other mopheads that bloom on old and new wood. People call them rebloomers. They develop flower buds in July-August, the buds open and bloom in the Spring; theeen, they develop new flower buds again in the summer and bloom again in the summer months. These rebloomers can be useful in cold places (Z5) where mopheads that bloom on old wood have blooming issues (cannot reliably bloom every year). Signs of winter issues: they may loose stems during winter if not given winter protection; all growth comes from the crown. However, the rebloomers develop a second round of flower buds in late Spring or early Summer and have another flush of blooms later in the summer. So you still get bloomage (not early in Spring but during the summer). The Endless Summer Series, the Forever and Ever Series and the Let’s Dance Series of hydrangeas are some examples of mophead collections that rebloom. Note: some people in very cold locations have had issues with the Original Endless Summer not blooming at all so take the Original with a grain of salt.

Does that help you?
Luis

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

Ohio? What a coincidence. I was talking about hydrangea hedges and discussing that one could go to the Cincinnati Zoo to see an example of a hedge made using oakleaf hydrangeas. They have one hedge, not too terribly long but it looks nice and in the Fall, when the oakleaf leaves turn colors, it must be very nice.

Mathilda Gutges is a good one but it unfortunately the bad distinction that is one of a few hydrangeas that did not make it for me. I remember getting it at a now defunct plant nursery and planted it in front of a window looking north. I had issues watering it and it did not come back after the first winter. Over here in the Summer/Fall, temperatures get to the 100++ and I basically forgot all about it. I have to monitor these shrubs and provide water by hand when temps rise to the 100s daily and I did not water it. The drip irrigation probably gave it some water but being on its first summer, it probably needed more water and did not get it. Sigh. Mea culpa, not MG's. I therefore suggest that you place the pot in a location where you will not "forget" about the plant either. Regarding your questions...

What type of soil to use... There over 17,254,802 different best types of potting soils out there! I know because the Internet says so! Hee hee hee! But really, you can make your own or use any potting soil that says it is for azaleas, camellias and-or hydrangeas. There are some people who like to make their own potting soil and if you want to control the items used to make it even more well-draining, that is fine as well. Hydrangeas like well-draining, acidic soil that is as evenly moist as possible. Periods of dry soil, followed by wet soil and back to dry again are not good. Have a plan for watering purposes. Now the soil and the plant will not complain but as soon as summer arrives -especially the first summer- the plant may complain so make sure it can whatever water it needs. You can set up and automated irrigation system or just plant to water every few days.

On the first summer, a hydrangea will be fighting what is called transplant shock. It was grown using perfect conditions at a plant wholesaler and now it finds out there is such a thing as summer and wind. Until it develops a large root system, it may suffer from episodes where those big ole leaves loose moisture faster than the roots can uptake moisture from the soil; as a result, the leaves wilt and the plant looks pretty sad. The trick with this is to determine if the soil is dry or not when the leaves wilt. If you insert a finger into the soil to a depth of 2" or use a soil moisture meter and it says the soil is dry then you have to water quickly it so it will recover. But if the soil is moist then you can leave it alone and the leaves will recover on their own by nightfall or by the next morning. If you see that the leaves are browning from the edges inwards instead, it is having some of these dry-wet-dry periods so you either need to water more or more often.

Size of the pot.... some people start with the same plastic pot that the plant came in but since those plastic ones get hot in the summer and the roots do not like it hot, you can start a progression if size until you get to a size appropriate for MG's 5x5. Note that you get those advertised sizes in places where the growing season is long (meaning the South and the coasts) so do not be surprised if growth tops out as 4x4 or so. I happen to have a 12" pot and have used it for starting some mail order hydrangeas that a friend sent me. So I would use a smaller size until the plant gets bigger and needs more room. If you see the roots circling around the pot, that would be a good time to prune the roots and transplant it to a bigger size. Just stop at the right size that you want to use.

The frequent watering makes the fertilizer minerals leach out so need to fertilize more often than if the plant was on the ground. Products like MG can be used, just be aware that they have to be applied often. You can also use general purpose, slow release fertilizers with a NPK Ratio of around 10-10-10. Those will last longer so you do not have reapply every hour. I have on hand a lot of cottonseed meal, organic compost and composted manure most of the time so when I received a batch of a dozen shrubs from my friend, I applied some granular fertilizer (Osmocote 10-10-10) and, later on, I used what I had on-hand: some of all of the others I mentioned. I have a soil test kit that I bought at Lowe's. Pretty cheap and inaccurate but it can flag when the potting mix has little nitrogen, phosphorus or potassium. I would use the test "every now and then" (2-4 weeks?? I can't exactly remember) and was just on the lookout for when the solution turned colors indicating low levels. After a year or so then you get an idea of about how often to apply the fertilizers. Do not forget to add some acidifier compounds too since these will also leach out along with the water. If you notice that the leaves are turning yellow-ish with the leaf veins remaining dark brown, you need to add some of these things. You can use greensand,

Pruning... hydrangeas really do not need pruning if you place them in a location where the shrub can reach its advertised size at maturity (commercial term for "eh, about 10 years or close to that). Some minor pruning is ok: (1) You can prune stems that cross or stems that happen to grow much larger than the others. (2) prune down to the ground any stems that did not leaf out by mid-to-late May. Note that MG develops invisible flower buds at the ends of the stems in July-August (July down here; later north of me) so if you ever need to prune, do it after the plant has bloomed and before the end of June to be safe. Deadheading of the spent blooms can be done at any time but note that deadheading is not the same as pruning. It just means you cut the little string that connects the bloom to the stem. You do not want to cut the stem itself because in winter, it has invisible flower buds at the ends of the stems.

Other stuff:

Mopheads like MG do best in morning sun and after/evening sun so place the pot in a location where you can control this. Especially during the summer. I give the new hydrangeas several days (maybe a week tops) of bright shade before I move it to a place where they got 1-2 hrs of morning sun and then to their final place where they had to get shade by 11am to 12pm. Being up north, you might be able to coax a little more sun but remember that the sun is an issue in the summer, not now in Spring. You can also drive around looking to see where people plant hydrangeas near you to get ideas.

Winter can be a problem for mophead hydrangeas. Those invisible flower buds that they develop in July-August need to survive winter so they open in Spring and so you will get bloomage. So once the plant goes dormant, bring the pot into the garage, basement, shed, etc and water it every week or every two weeks. Of all possible places to put the pot, select the one that gives more protection from cold drying winds and cold temps. Then take it outside in the Spring, about two weeks after your average date of last frost. Very cold temps or lack of water can kill these flower buds during winter. If you notice that the stems did not leaf out by mid-May and that new growth is coming back from the crown, the flower buds at the ends of the stems did not make and there will not be bloomage that year. I just got hit with this problem even though I am in Zone 8a. This last winter was very mild and even though most of my hydrangeas went dormant, many of them started leafing out from the crown back in February (later for you).

Not sure how well MG might do bloom-wise if your zone is Z5 cold though. Zone 6 is starting to push the limits of typical mopheads so the plants needs to be brought inside or people have to put winter protection around the bushes when the plants are grown outside. Mophead hydrangeas that bloom like MG are said to bloom on old wood only. But there are other mopheads that bloom on old wood and new wood that are useful in cold zones. People call them rebloomers. They develop flower buds in July-August, the buds open and bloom in the Spring; theeen, they develop new flower buds again in the summer and bloom again in the summer months. These rebloomers can be useful in cold places (Z5) where mopheads that bloom on old wood have blooming issues (cannot reliably bloom every year). Signs of winter issues: they may loose stems during winter if not given winter protection; all growth comes from the crown. However, the rebloomers develop a second round of flower buds in late Spring or early Summer and have another flush of blooms later in the summer. So you still get bloomage (not early in Spring but during the summer). The Endless Summer Series, the Forever and Ever Series and the Let’s Dance Series of hydrangeas are some examples of mophead collections that rebloom. Note: some people in very cold locations have had issues with the Original Endless Summer not blooming at all so take the Original with a grain of salt.

Does that help you?
Luis
Last edited by luis_pr on Thu Apr 27, 2017 7:55 am, edited 1 time in total.

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applestar
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Good morning! I merged the two duplicate threads. Will clean up duplicate comments later.

Katie_89
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Luis, thank you for commenting!!

it was extremely helpful and I plan on actually printingoing it out and keeping it as a guide for keeping her (my hydrangea is a girl btw ;) ) nice and healthy!!

here is another question.
so a friend of mine stopped by today and she is encouraging me to plant my girl in the ground. I soo desperately want to BUT we live in a rental property with limited yard space. there is one spot in the front and 2 potential spots in the back yard her and I figured would work. Now because my girl has the potential to grow 5×5 how would I go about making a place for her?? would I have to dig up a 5×5 grass area??
if so, I'd definitely need that approved my landlords!!

luis_pr
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You would need to visually locate a spot with smaller dimensions, a place where you could you can plant the shrub and then you would need to discuss with the landlords. You would not need to dig 5x5, just a hole based on the instructions given in the plant label so you do not void a warranty offered by the plant nursery. Some of these instructions typically say stuff like twice the size of the pot in which the shrub was sold or stuff like that.

And yes, I agree, you would need the ok of the apartment landlords if planting outside an apartment. Some may not like to alter the front view of units and some may prohibit planting shrubs altogether; they may restrict you to putting the shrubs in pots either inside the apt or in a small balcony area. There could be many rules/things that they might say you can or cannot do. So ask. Not sure if your contract spells out the rules or any rules for plants. Maybe they would be agreeable to using spots in the back yard as less people (future renters) might view the backyard area. Not sure how they would handle the watering: would it be left to you if the area is not watered? If the area is watered, are you allowed to increase the amt of water sprinkled on the area in the summer if the hydrangea regularly needs more water then? or do you have to contact them to increase the amt of water in the summer? etc etc etc.... I would have similar questions if renting a house. I have lived in apts but not in rented homes.

Katie_89
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Thank you Luis!!
I haven't decided on what to do yethe but am leaning towards keeping her a pot

If yoyou don't mind, I have another question/concern.
Temperatures have dropped here in Ohio (it's like that) and has been in the mid 50s/high 40s during the day and 40s/30s at night. I have kept her outside and seems to be doing good but worried about these Temps potential killing her :/
at night I was thinking about moving her into the garage at night until Temps at night rise back up.
is that a good idea??

what are dangerous Temps for her??

also, she has a green plactic ring around her. should I clip that off when I transfer her??

luis_pr
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Hello, Katie. If the temps are above freezing and there has been no forecast for frost or freezes, they may be ok. I would look at the long term forecast, check the lows for the next 10-14 days and see if they are well above freezing. Like only the 40s. Then bring it outside. If close to 32F then bring it into the garage. But do not make a habit of this in-out.I did one year with some heavy tropicals and do not want to do that again. Whew. Too many heavy pots going in-out too many times. Hee hee hee.

I would be concerned when there is mention of freezes, frost and temps in the 30s.

I would remove plastic rings and plant labels. I keep the plastic labels in a drawer until I tire of them... or if the plant does not make it. If it is a common plant for me then I throw it away as they rarely have any REALLY interesting info anyways. But for a new plant for me, I may want to keep sun-shade info in case I want to move it later on.

Katie_89
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Hi!!
Haven't posted in a while!
So I actually went and bought another hydrangea for myself for mother's day! My first one is doing great! blooms are huge and colorful!
for some reason the second one isn't thriving as well. I did just get it last week but I could tell she wasn't being well taken care of in the store.
Anyways, yesterday I noticed the new one was wilting really bad so I watered them and hours later she perked right up. But it was the same thing today too :/
It was hotter today though so that could be it but I also just moved them both to bigger pots.
Ttied posting a picture but guess the pics are too big and won't load :/

A girlfriend of mine got 5 hydrangea plants from Sam's Club and planted 3 of them today and said they are now soo sad looking and very wilted. she said that when they were digging the holes in the ground it was all clay and sand but they tried to plant anyways and added some new soil plus some mulch I think. guessing they are in shock from the transplant.

But once I figure out how to shrink pictures I will post pics of mine! of anyone knows how please share lol!!

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rainbowgardener
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You can post your pictures on some photo hosting site like photobucket and then use the IMG code it gives you.
You can email the pics to yourself. The picture as it comes through will be smaller.

Your new hydrangea and your friend's are probably just transplant shocked. Keep them moist (but not waterlogged) and protected from hot afternoon sun and they should pull through.

Katie_89
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How can I protect them from hot afternoon sun?? it's supposed to be near 90 degrees here for the next few days and I definitely want then to survive. they are already in a pretty shady spot but still get the sun they need.

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rainbowgardener
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If they are in a spot where they get afternoon shade, then they are protected.

luis_pr
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Summer temps here arrived several weeks ago and I started noticing some wilting too... in the newly planted ones. In your -and my- neck of the woods, they now need to start getting mulched (2-4"), watered regularly and protected from the afternoon sun by 11am or 12pm. Then regularly checked for wilting, Those big ole leaves loose moisture faster than the roots can absorb water and you end with wilting. But as long as the soil is evenly moist, they will fix themselves by nighttime or the next morning. Newly planted shrubs do this more on their first few summers but still will do this if it gets too hot, dry or windy. I try to check them for wilting episodes almost daily when I take the dogs outside after they eat. If the wilting episode looks awful. I give them about 1/2 gallon of water and ask questions later. LOL! But it is looks "normal" then I check the soil to see if ti moist and either leave them alone (if the soil is moist) or give them water. Do not skimp of waterings. On each watering, I give them 1g of water but I will increase (more water or same amt but more often) as the temps get close to the 100s and as I see these wilting issues develop. By the time we get to frequent 100s, I will be watering 1.5g-2g twice a week and maybe once more on some Sundays but I will do that extra manual one with a hose as my other shrubs are usually ok; it is just the azaleas, camellias and hydrangeas that need the water. Remember that they were sold potted; which means their roots were cut to fit into the pot that was used to sell them. In future years, they will develop larger root systems that can respond faster and better but until they get established in the first few summers, keep an eye on the leaves as best as you can when temps are hot.

Katie_89
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It's been pretty hot here and every morning one has been wilting. So I've been watering them every day
afraid the pots will fry the roots and the flowers in this heat :/

luis_pr
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Make sure the pots themselves are not getting heated by the afternoon or evening sun as that would make them warm up and loose moisture. Roots near the edges will also not like that heat. Similarly, make sure the area is not windy and that the pots have unclogged holes from which the water can exit.

I am concerned about the wilting one though. I would expect that the leaves would not be wilted in the morning. But that assumes that the soil has moisture going into the evening hours. When does it get water, how much water and when do you detect the wilting of leaves?



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