How Low Should You Cut Hydrangeas In The Winter?

In late fall or early spring, hydrangeas are pruned to maintain their health and display. Fall pruning is recommended for mophead and lacecap types that have gone dormant. Oakleaf hydrangeas, which feature large, oak-shaped leaves and cone-shaped flower clusters, bloom on old wood. To ensure the hydrangea is hardy to at least Zone 5, plant it near a structure that holds some heat. Pruning done in late winter or early spring, but no later than just after the last frost, will help initiate growth as the weather warms.

To prune hydrangeas regularly, remove dead branches and cut back the stems. It is safe to prune as much as one-third off of your hydrangea that blooms on new wood. In late winter or early spring, these shrubs can be cut all the way back to the ground. Smooth hydrangeas will produce much larger blooms if pruned hard like oakleafs. If your oakleaf is outgrowing its dedicated space, cut back no more than one-third of the stems after the plant flowers in June or July.

Most pruning is carried out in late winter or early spring, but climbing hydrangeas are pruned after flowering in summer. Prune back stems to just above a fat bud, called a heading cut, in fall, late winter, or spring. Mound shredded leaves or bark mulch around the base of the plant to about 12 inches or so. Prune about a third of the stems a little harder down the stem to get good foliage and prune the rest for big flowers in summer. The easiest way to cut hydrangeas is to cut by the stem of approximately 1/3rd of the current height.