13/10/2026
🌸 **Hydrangeas: what to cut, when to cut, and when to leave well alone** 🌸
I get asked about hydrangeas more than almost anything else, so here's the lowdown for UK gardens 👇
✂️ **Mopheads & lacecaps (H. macrophylla, H. serrata)**
These flower on last year's wood, so go easy! Leave the old flower heads on over winter. They look lovely in a frost and protect the buds underneath. In March or early April, once the worst frosts are gone, cut each stem back to the first pair of fat, healthy buds. Every few years, take one or two of the oldest, tired stems right down to the base to keep it vigorous.
✂️ **Panicle & Annabelle types (H. paniculata, H. arborescens)**
These flower on new growth, so you can be much braver. In late winter or early spring, cut paniculatas back to a framework, about two pairs of buds on last year's stems. Annabelle can go right down to around 30cm. Expect a big flush of fresh stems and huge blooms.
✂️ **Climbing, oakleaf & aspera types**
These need barely any pruning at all. Just a light tidy after flowering, or in spring, to keep them in shape.
Any hydrangea questions? Pop them in the comments 👇
