Dead wood Hydrangea pruning

[mfsinger]

It's been awhile since I've posted, and I have asked a similar question in the past, but I'm unsure of the specifics. I just need to make sure that I am completely clear on this. If you have Hydrangeas that bloom on dead wood, is there any pruning that should be done in the spring? Do I cut anything down or do I leave it all? Am I supposed to trim some of the "dead" stalks down? Do I just clip off the tips? This is where I'm confused. A few days ago, someone told me to cut them back. That was confusing. If a plant blooms off of dead wood, why do you cut anything back in the spring? Cutting all the stalks, or branches, or whatever the correct term, would remove all of the dead wood. Last year, I noticed that some of the stalks only appeared to be dead, but under the bark they were green and not dry. I'm assuming that I should leave those stalks alone, or trim the tips off that appear to be truly dead. I appreciate the advice/directions on this, and apologize for being so dense. The major reason I'm still not getting this is due to the fact that I left everything as is last year and I did not cut anything down, yet the plants did not bloom at all. I'm somewhat wondering if that has to do with the fact that we had bizarre weather in Michigan, and just after everything started to sprout, we had a couple of frost nights.

I'm not a gardener, and don't even play one on TV, but I help take care of my mother's senior friend's yard every year. This is the fourth or fifth season, so if I can't get these plants to show signs of blooming, they are going to the guillotine. Thanks.

 

[RonsGarden]

For ones that bloom on old wood (last years growth) wait until the bud swell.
On stems that have buds, you can remove the ends of the stems (with no swollen buds) down to healthy buds.
You may find older stems (2 or more years) with no green buds, they are dead and can be removed right down to the base of the plant.
Just need to be careful when cutting since the new swelling buds can be easily knocked off the stems.
Since it was the worst winter in over 50 years the plant may not bloom this year.
I recomment you use a fertilizer designed for acid loving plants ....best time is once the leaf buds open up!

 

[mfsinger]

Thanks as always. I know the acid helps turn the flowers blue rather than pink which is a plus. I think I've finally got the concept. As I said earlier, the thing that threw me off, was the fact that the plants did nothing last year and I never cut any of the stems. Last year's damage was late frosts and this years will be a horrible winter. I miss Seattle. This Michigan thing is... ack.