Drooping Hydrangeas

Avidweeder

Hi everyone

This is so sad but one of the two huge Hydrangea bushes either side of our front door is suffering. It has grown so vast but the flower stems are gangly and cannot support them selves at all. They are just flopping down over the path and blocking it. So sad as the bush is Laden this year with blooms. My question is, Can it be the Hydrangea be Cut down out of season with severely damaging it? 

Jason-3

Macrophelia flower on old wood...so in essence you would be setting the plant back a few years if you did that.

Instead I'd encourage lots of watering, a good liquid seaweed feed and a good strong hoop support putting in. You could then look to move the plant in November if you feel it's too big for its current site

Avidweeder

Thankyou Jason-3 for you reply, The plant has been there many many years, longer than we have lived here. I don't think moving it will ever be an option as it is so close now to the porch and path. Getting a spade in there is impossible as the previous tenant put red sharp stones everywhere over the soil  Nothing gets in to it! Thankyou for your advice though, the rest is indeed possible.

KT53

It's amazing how quickly hydrangeas recover when given a really good soaking.  You can almost see them start to straighten back up (slight exaggeration) but certainly within an hour or so you can see the difference.

Fairygirl

Yep - water is what they need, as KT53 says.  If they're in a sunnier site, it's important that they have a moist enough soil.
If you're unable to move it, you could also remove stems right back to the base every year to rejuvenate the whole shrub. Take about a third of them each year. 

Avidweeder

Dear Fairygirl
Thankyou for this post. I will be cutting back it seems. The drooping hydrangea is now blocking the path so much we have worn out our lawn bypassing it. We have watered it a lot over the days but being so top heavy and gangly it need salvation. Thankyou for advice