Question

We have two hydrangea plants on the lot of a house we purchased last year.
We therefore have no idea of the strain (type)of the plants.  One plant is about
4 1/2 ft high and only had only two blooms this summer -- the other is
about 2 1/2 ft high and had many blooms all summer and fall.

The leaves on both are full and healthy.

last summer both plants had many blooms.  Is there something I did when
cutting them back last year that had a negative impact on the larger plant?

I see that you recommend that the plants be pruned back in mid winter to
about 1/2 the plant stalk length.  Does pruning to a 1 Ft length hurt the
bloom production.  The smaller plant would about meet your 1/2 length but
the larger plant would be far beyond that recommendation!

Note: We live in Northern Ohio.

Your advice would be welcomed.

Ed Ropes

Answer
Ed,

I think that you did prune the larger one too much. If you wanted to take it down that far, it should have been done in stages, cutting the plant back half way over the course of a few years to bring it down to the height that you wanted it. I would recommend leaving it alone and allowing it to recover on it's own, or fertilizing them this fall with a low nitrogen fertilizer to stimulate healthier overall growth.

Good luck.
Ed Gulliksen