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Pruning large-leaved hydrangeas in autumn is carried out for rejuvenation, maintaining an attractive appearance and for sanitary purposes. Many gardeners recommend dividing pruning into 2 stages - autumn and spring. In mid-autumn, 2-year-old peduncles are removed, and in the spring all other types of haircuts are carried out. Pruning is done using sharp garden shears or pruning shears; it is better to immediately sprinkle the damaged areas with wood ash.
Do I need to prune large-leaved hydrangeas?
Bigleaf hydrangea, like other varieties of this perennial flowering shrub, can live well without pruning. However, if you do not trim regularly, this will noticeably worsen the appearance of the plant. Depending on the purpose, there are several types of pruning:
- Sanitary – removal of shoots affected by diseases.
- Rejuvenating – stimulating the growth of new shoots.
- Dramatically rejuvenating – complete renewal of the bush by removing a significant part of the old branches.
- Formative – pruning for aesthetic purposes.
This division is largely arbitrary. When gardeners prune large-leaved hydrangeas, they have several goals in mind. Moreover, the procedure is carried out regularly - otherwise the neglected bush will no longer decorate the garden.
Pruning large-leaved hydrangea is mandatory for both decorative and sanitary purposes.
Why do you need to prune large-leaf hydrangeas?
Pruning hydrangeas is mandatory, and it is carried out for different purposes:
- maintaining a beautiful silhouette of the bush by creating the desired shape;
- maintaining active flowering (if you remove individual shoots, the flower stalks will receive more water and nutrients);
- removal of all damaged, broken, old shoots;
- removal of all branches affected by diseases.
The main advantage of pruning is that by removing old shoots, new branches begin to grow at a faster pace. This has a good effect on both the appearance and health of large-leaved hydrangea.
When can you prune large-leaved hydrangea?
There are 2 terms for pruning shrubs - in spring and autumn, and among gardeners there is no consensus yet on when it is best to prune:
- in autumn (3-4 weeks before the first frost), it is often recommended to prune only paniculate and tree hydrangeas.
- in spring (in March, before the juices begin to flow), you can trim the large-leaved variety. It is also recommended to prune any types of young hydrangeas in the spring.
It is also possible to combine both options - for example, remove all faded inflorescences in the fall (late September or mid-October), and then form a bush in the spring (late March or early April) at your discretion.At the same time, you can remove all old and damaged shoots.
In summer, no haircut is needed. For example, there is no need to prune large-leaved hydrangeas after flowering - it is better to wait until mid-autumn. But if an emergency arises (a strong wind breaks or breaks the branches), it is better to carefully remove them by cutting them off with pruning shears or garden shears. Sprinkle the cut area with ash or other disinfectant.
It is in the spring that the main pruning of large-leaved hydrangeas is done.
How to prune large leaf hydrangea
Pruning large-leaved hydrangea has significant features. After purchasing and planting a bush in a permanent place, pruning is not carried out for the first 2-3 years, since this is not necessary. However, old, wind-damaged shoots can also be removed from young shrubs.
The main cutting begins with older hydrangeas. To carry out proper pruning, several rules should be taken into account:
- The bush blooms on last year's shoots, so they cannot be removed either in the fall or in the spring.
- If the shoots bloom for the second year in a row, they should be removed in the fall, since they will no longer produce any more flowers.
- All other types of pruning (in order to form hydrangea, rejuvenate and remove old, damaged shoots) must be carried out in the spring, immediately after the growth buds swell.
General scheme for pruning large-leaved hydrangea in autumn and spring
How to prune large-leaved hydrangea in autumn
At this time, it is necessary to remove only clearly damaged branches and 2-year-old faded shoots. The instructions for pruning large-leaved hydrangea in the fall are quite simple for both beginners and experienced gardeners:
- Take scissors or pruning shears and disinfect them in a special product - for example, a 2% solution of potassium permanganate.
- Completely remove all 2-year-old flower stalks - next year they will no longer bloom. Cuts can be made at right angles.
- Sprinkle all cuts with wood ash or crushed coal.
How to prune large-leaved hydrangea in spring
Pruning large-leaved hydrangea for the winter is a preparatory stage before the main cutting, which is most often carried out in early spring.
- Inspect the bush and first of all cut off all old, diseased, damaged branches at a right angle.
- On healthy shoots, remove frost-damaged tips - this is especially important for regions with extreme winters.
- Leave 6-10 skeletal branches (strong, supporting shoots) completely and 3-5 last year’s branches.
- Thinning the crown means cutting off all shoots that clearly spoil the shape, as well as branches growing deep into the crown, overlapping each other.
- Carry out anti-aging pruning: remove all old shoots, leaving 3-4 healthy buds below. They will give rise to new flowering branches, which will be noticeably stronger than the previous ones.
Thanks to stimulating pruning, the bush will be completely rejuvenated, which will have a good effect on its health and flowering.
Hydrangea is cut with pruning shears or garden shears
Caring for large-leaved hydrangea after pruning
At the moment of pruning itself, the bush experiences stress, so it is better to leave it alone: watering is given when necessary (complete absence of rain), and fertilizing is not applied at this time. Further care depends on the season.
After spring pruning (2-3 weeks later), the flower is given potassium and nitrogen fertilizers, which stimulate shoot growth, which is especially important at the beginning of the season. You can use, for example, urea and potassium sulfate. They are taken in equal quantities (15-20 g each) and dissolved in 10 liters of water - this amount is enough for 2 bushes. Instead of this fertilizer, you can give slurry dissolved in water in a ratio of 1:10.
After autumn pruning (also after 2-3 weeks), the hydrangea needs not only to be well fed, but also prepared for winter. The basic rules of care are:
- The plant must be fed with superphosphate and potassium sulfate - a tablespoon per 10 liters of water. You can also give a little organic matter, but if it is used for mulching, you should not add additional fertilizer.
- The tree trunk circle is mulched with a layer of 5-6 cm. Humus or peat is used as mulch. The top can be additionally insulated with sawdust or pine needles. Organic matter not only retains heat well, but also provides the soil with nutrients, which will be useful with the onset of the new season.
- After pruning, it is better to wrap young bushes of large-leaved hydrangeas for the winter.This can be done using agrofibre, burlap and other available materials. Despite the high winter hardiness of some varieties (up to -35 degrees), in the regions of the Urals, Siberia and the Far East it is recommended to cover even adult bushes.
Based on this, it can be calculated that the haircut is carried out in mid-September, and fertilizing is given in mid-October. In the southern regions, the dates can be shifted slightly.
Proper care after pruning guarantees lush flowering of hydrangea throughout the season.
Advice from experienced gardeners
Experienced gardeners regularly prune large-leaved hydrangeas; judging by reviews and reports, they prefer to do this in early spring. Some of them get their hair cut even in July. For example, open sources describe the method of Tim Bebel, an American florist who sells hydrangeas in a specialty store.
The essence of his technique is this:
- In July, all non-flowering shoots are shortened by 1/3.
- In this case, only 1 side bud is left, which is located closest to the ground.
- For the winter, all damaged and diseased branches are removed, and the remaining buds are carefully covered.
- In the spring, young powerful shoots will appear from them, which in the summer will be equal to the previous ones.
Conclusion
Pruning large-leaved hydrangea in the fall is a fairly simple procedure: at this time it is enough to remove only 2-year-old flowering shoots.The main types of haircuts are carried out as early as next year, from mid-March to early April (depending on the climatic conditions of the region).
You can visually study the method of pruning large-leaved hydrangea in the fall in the video:
Thank you very much for your clear answer and useful recommendations.