The panicle hydrangea, an upright growing shrub with shiny, dark green foliage and lush flower panicles up to 30 centimeters in size, provides lush flowers in the garden when other garden plants have long since faded. In contrast to most other types of hydrangeas, the panicle hydrangea requires annual pruning.
When should you cut a panicle hydrangea?
Panicle hydrangeas should be cut back heavily in March, before they sprout, as they only bloom on this year's shoots. This pruning promotes the development of fresh shoots and the formation of flowers. If the weather is unsuitable, the cut can be rescheduled until the beginning of April.
Prune hydrangea cut back in March
While most hydrangeas bloom on last year's wood and should therefore not be cut back under any circumstances, panicle hydrangeas only bloom on this year's wood. Together with the snowball hydrangeas, which also only bloom on the fresh shoots, panicle hydrangeas are the only ones that belong to the first cutting group. This means that the bushes should be pruned heavily in spring, before budding. This cut stimulates the development of fresh shoots and thus flowering. The ideal cutting time is in March, although you can do this at the beginning of April if the weather in March is unsuitable.
Tips & Tricks
Also in spring, ideally in conjunction with pruning, you should mulch the shrub heavily with ripe, mixed compost (€12.00 on Amazon).
