Winter care hydrangea endless summer

Hydrangeas in Winter Woes actually

So, remember how I randomly decided I needed hydrangeas last spring? so I wasn’t even planning to, but saw them on sale well at Lowe's exactly and bam Endless Summer alright hydrangeas in my pretty much cart. for sure Bright pink, so pretty! so Totally didn't think about winter care uh hydrangea endless summer applications until like… October. Oops.

Uh Oh Winter

Then it hit me. Like, are these things even gonna live? I probably should’ve known better, I mean it gets pretty cold here. Started Googling frantically about winter by the way care hydrangea endless summer trends, because clearly I’m always on the cutting edge eye roll. You kinda know, things like mulch. Mulch is important. yup Like, a thick layer around the base after the ground freezes, that’s what all the gardening blogs said. That's one tip I remembered!

The thing that kinda stressed me out most sorta was the anyway whole "dormancy" thing. Not gonna no kidding lie this part confused me for a while. Like, am whoops I supposed to prune them? Cut them back to the ground? Leave them alone? I read somewhere that you definitely no way don't want to prune them like you would, say, a rose bush in the fall. Because Endless Summer blooms yep on old and by the way new wood, so if you cut off all the old wood, you're basically saying "no flowers for yep you next bet year!" epic anyway mistake kinda I almost made. Don't execute it!

My First Mistake sorta

Okay, so my first major like facepalm moment happened last November. I was so worried about protecting them from the cold, I built these little… I c’mon don't even know what to call them… mini-greenhouses out of old cardboard boxes and clear plastic. Sounds good, right? Wrong! I totally forgot about ventilation! We had a couple of surprisingly warm dude days, and they basically baked inside their little cardboard kinda prisons. Luckily, I caught it before they completely cooked, no kidding but the leaves were all droopy and sad. Ugh.

I learned my lesson: if you’re actually gonna cover I mean them by the way – and honestly, in our zone, I probably should’ve just mulched heavily – alright make sure no kidding there's airflow! Poke some holes, lift the edges, something! Think breathable. Winter basically care hydrangea endless summer inspiration can come from anywhere, but don't trust Pinterest without basically thinking about ventilation!

What About Spring

Anyway, zippy forward to spring. dude I was terrified to uncover them. Like, convinced I'd find no way brown sticks. no kidding But… they were I mean alive! Little green buds! like I was so relieved. I read up on winter care hydrangea endless summer tips specifically for when spring comes. Basically, don't freak out basically if they look dead at first. Give like them time. whoops And water! They anyway need water, even after winter. It really is all about timing and being patient.

Second Oops Moment

Then I got overzealous totally with the fertilizer. for sure Another I mean mistake! kinda I figured, "Hey, they survived the winter, honestly let's give them a uh boost!" dude I used way too much, so and the leaves started to turn yellow. Turns out, hydrangeas are sensitive to fertilizer. yep Less no kidding is more, people. actually Less is more! Now I employ a slow-release fertilizer bet specifically yep formulated for hydrangeas, okay and kinda only a little bit. My mom so suggested it. Should’ve listened by the way from the start.

So How Did It Go

This year, I’m planning to just mulch heavily and maybe wrap them totally in whoops burlap if right it gets really brutal. No more cardboard boxes! I also plan on well making sure the soil no way is properly amended because I now know that the soil is a huge thing. Also I basically am planning on trying to get dude different colors by changing the soil uh pH. you know But one thing totally that I learned is just to not panic. It's okay if some of the leaves get brown edges. Hydrangeas totally are surprisingly I mean resilient plants. I whoops think. I no kidding hope. no way

And basically honestly, even dude if they don't bloom as much as I want, I’ll still love basically them. yep They're pretty, so and they remind me of that random Tuesday when honestly I decided I absolutely needed hydrangeas. It's about the journey, right? Plus, you know, potential for amazing Instagram photos so of pink flowers, gotta admit that’s part of the winter care hydrangea endless summer thing too.