Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: When to prune your hydrangea
Hydrangeas are one of the most popular flowering shrubs.
A big question is when to prune them. Prune back stems to just above a fat bud — called a heading cut — in fall, late winter or spring. These plants have conical-shaped flower heads.
The above diagram is from the University of MN Ext. Read more here.
Prune paniculata in fall, late winter or early spring.
Macrophylla, or Big leaf hydrangea produce buds in late summer to early fall (August-September) that will form next year’s flowers.
So prune these shrubs after they finish blooming before August (again, make a heading cut). Arborescens or smooth hydrangea should be allowed to grow a season or two before doing any serious “hard” pruning.
Once the shrub is established and has a couple of growing seasons under its belt, prune these hydrangeas in the spring down to the ground, or not at all if you want a larger shrub. Flower buds will grow on this season’s growth or new wood.
Arborescens also include ‘Incrediball’ and ‘Invincibelle’.
Climbing hydrangeas are tough and hardly need pruning, if ever, except to remove any dead wood that develops. The University of Minnesota extension says this vine is really hard to get rid of once established so you might want to make sure you really want it!
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