Hydrangea tree

Question: Our pink diamond hydrangea tree of two years isn’t at all like what we thought we were buying. The shape of the tree is where the branches spread out and then up just a little bit. It has buds on it but everyone else’s are in full bloom. What can we do to have it more the shape of most other  ones we’ve seen? We have only pruned some branches that were below the ones you see in pictures. What can be done; should we prune back the present branches or should we replant it? It gets sun most of the day.

responder: An Ask Extension Expert Replied August 16, 2024, 5:54 PM EDT
response: Thanks for the question.  I need two pieces of information from you. 1).  You said that the tree is two years old.  That would imply you planted it in 2022.  If so, when during 2022 did you plant it? 2).  From your picture, it would appear that under the rock mulch there is some black fabric.  Is that correct (that might be part of your problem)? Looking forward to you getting back to us.  Thanks for consulting with us.

responder: An Ask Extension Expert Replied August 16, 2024, 6:02 PM EDT
response: Thought of one more piece of information that I need.  When specifically did you do your last pruning? Many thanks.

responder: The Question Asker Replied August 16, 2024, 6:42 PM EDT
response: WI’m pretty sure we planted it about the end of July. Yes but the black fabric is way away from where the tree was planted. It had been here when we moved in but my husband cuts it back to where you see the edge of it; can it b the problem when cut away from the tree?Sent from my iPhone On Aug 16, 2024, at 5:02 PM, Ask Extension wrote:﻿

responder: The Question Asker Replied August 17, 2024, 12:33 PM EDT
response: The only pruning I did was early this spring and I took off branches that were further down in the trunk and made it look even shorter than it looks now. Sent from my iPhone On Aug 16, 2024, at 5:38 PM, Gerry Foell wrote:﻿WI’m pretty sure we planted it about the end of July. Yes but the black fabric is way away from where the tree was planted. It had been here when we moved in but my husband cuts it back to where you see the edge of it; can it b the problem when cut away from the tree?Sent from my iPhoneOn Aug 16, 2024, at 5:02 PM, Ask Extension wrote:﻿

responder: An Ask Extension Expert Replied August 17, 2024, 2:18 PM EDT
response: Thank you for your question. To begin with, it is a fruitless and exasperating exercise to compare your hydrangea with those of others. There are so many different varieties of hydrangea that such comparisons yield little in the way of useful information. Some comments: 1). It appears that the current appearance of the hydrangea may not be what you expected. What you have is a hydrangea tree. This was originally a hydrangea bush but was extensively pruned to make it look more like a tree. If you would like it to have more of bush shape, do no more pruning in the lower portion of the plant where currently there are no branches. New branches should occur in this area though it will take some time. In a more realistic vein, for the next few years you will have a hydrangea tree and not a bush. 2). In its current location, the hydrangea is most likely under stress from insufficient water and nutrients. Instead of moving it, do two other things.  a). The plant behind the hydrangea and to the right looks to be an American Germander. It is way too close to the hydrangea. It should be moved. Right now it is drawing water nutrients away from the hydrangea. b). Secondly, the fabric under the rock mulch is impeding water and nutrient flow to the hydrangea roots. The small area right next to the hydrangea in which the fabric has been removed is not sufficient. Remove the rock mulch and the fabric all around the hydrangea out to a distance of at least two feet from the hydrangea base. Then put wood mulch down where you had removed the rock mulch. Keep this wood mulch about a foot away from the base of the hydrangea. That will remain an area of bare dirt. See the following: https://www.yourgreenpal.com/blog/dont-kill-your-trees-make-sure-you-are-mulching-them-the-right-way 3). With respect to flowering, I don’t think there should be concern at this point. Your Pink Diamond hydrangea flowers on “old wood”. This means that flowers in one particular year come from buds formed in the previous year. As is typical for hydrangea using old wood, your Pink Diamond should bloom in late spring to early summer. See: https://www.provenwinners.com/learn/care/pruning-shrubs-part-2-when-best-time-prune - :~:text=Flowering on old wood means,buds for the following year. Here’s the deal. When you planted this hydrangea in July 2022, it may or may not have had blooms on it. However during 2022, the hydrangea was expending most of its energy on establishing a strong root system. Most likely and for this reason, your hydrangea formed few buds for 2023 blooming. I would expect that you saw few blossoms in 2023 and any that you might have seen, probably looked rather anemic. You currently have many buds, but they are not blooming. I suspect this is largely attributable to your hydrangea being unable to obtain sufficient water and nutrients due to the cloth under the rock mulch and/or adverse competition from the other nearby plants. If you do what I suggested in 2.b. above, this issue should largely be resolved. I would fully expect that you will see much improved blooming in the 2025 growing season. 3). At this point, do NO MORE pruning. For hydrangea such as yours, the only time to do pruning is early summer. 4). Keep your hydrangea well- watered (at least twice a week) starting now (mid-August 2024) and continue doing so up until the first frost (probably around mid -October). 5). In mid-September, add a winter shrub fertilizer around the base of the hydrangea over the newly laid-down wood mulch. Thoroughly water it in. This fertilizer should be available at any Anoka gardening center. This type of fertilizer will slowly release nutrients into the soil and prepare your hydrangea to commence vigorous flowering in June 2025. Be sure that the word “winter” appears on the fertilizer bag. Also look at the product label for the nitrogen components. Be sure that the word “urea” appears among these components. See: https://ecowhizz.co.za/choosing-the-right-fertilizer-for-winter/ - :~:text=Slow-Release Fertilizers%3A Consider using,or “controlled-release”. If you start these procedures now (mid-August 2024), I feel quite confident that come spring 2025 you will see an improvement in your hydrangea. Good luck. Please get back to me if you have any further, related questions.

responder: The Question Asker Replied August 17, 2024, 4:07 PM EDT
response: Thank you for your reply. I think I didn’t explain myself very well. We know it’s a Pink Diamond tree and that’s what we wanted as we have other hydrangea bushes in our yard. I measured and the black fabric is close to a foot from the trunk. We will remove more. We will have figure out what to do about the rock as it’s a large area and I dislike the rock a lot and it’s hard to walk on and we are used to mulch but to hire someone to remove as much rock as we have is not affordable. I do think that it gets plenty of water as we hand water this whole area by hand and so we water at least the flower pots everyday when we haven’t got rain that day. It’s almost every other day if mild and we’ve had rain and if warm every day. I have a rain gauge app so I know how much rain we have right where we live. What we want is to have is a hydrangea tree and that is has a more round shape and not this flat top that we have. We only pruned the branches that we did because they were below the ones that are there and too low for a tree. This was to grow to a height of 8 feet and a spread of six feet. This doesn’t have any branches growing upwards and it has a very flat look to it. This is what I wanted you to know about. So I do understand the need for the winter fertilizer and what you’ve recommended but how can the shape of it change?BonnieSent from my iPhone On Aug 17, 2024, at 1:18 PM, Ask Extension wrote:﻿

responder: The Question Asker Replied August 17, 2024, 4:12 PM EDT
response: Also is it not right that it will grow from the top as right know I just see as a short tree and nothing like or close to 8 Ft. At maturity which we were told would be in Two to four years. Sent from my iPhone On Aug 17, 2024, at 3:02 PM, Gerry Foell wrote:﻿Thank you for your reply. I think I didn’t explain myself very well. We know it’s a Pink Diamond tree and that’s what we wanted as we have other hydrangea bushes in our yard. I measured and the black fabric is close to a foot from the trunk. We will remove more. We will have figure out what to do about the rock as it’s a large area and I dislike the rock a lot and it’s hard to walk on and we are used to mulch but to hire someone to remove as much rock as we have is not affordable. I do think that it gets plenty of water as we hand water this whole area by hand and so we water at least the flower pots everyday when we haven’t got rain that day. It’s almost every other day if mild and we’ve had rain and if warm every day. I have a rain gauge app so I know how much rain we have right where we live. What we want is to have is a hydrangea tree and that is has a more round shape and not this flat top that we have. We only pruned the branches that we did because they were below the ones that are there and too low for a tree. This was to grow to a height of 8 feet and a spread of six feet. This doesn’t have any branches growing upwards and it has a very flat look to it. This is what I wanted you to know about. So I do understand the need for the winter fertilizer and what you’ve recommended but how can the shape of it change?BonnieSent from my iPhoneOn Aug 17, 2024, at 1:18 PM, Ask Extension wrote:﻿

responder: An Ask Extension Expert Replied August 17, 2024, 7:44 PM EDT
response: Thanks for getting back to us. 1). The reason for removing the fabric around the hydrangea is to improve the penetration of water and nutrients. So remove the fabric out from the tree as far as you can. 2). I hear you regarding the difficulty of removing the rock mulch. So after you remove the fabric, move the rock mulch back and forget about the wood mulch. Rock mulch has the tendency to retain heat in the soil, which can cause stress on the hydrangea. However, your garden may have sufficient shade where soil heating may not be a problem. 3). I appreciate your comments about your watering. The real question is not how much water is put onto the garden, but how much water penetrates the soil to get to the roots. By removing the fabric, I think that your current watering schedule should suffice. 4). Thanks for clarifying the shape you would like. As I understand it, you would like a hydrangea tree that looks more like a lollipop than an anvil. To achieve this look, you should prune the ends of the branches that extend out in a horizontal manner and minimize pruning the branches that extend up vertically. The best time to do this pruning would be while the hydrangea is still in a dormant state. Typically this means late winter to early spring (early to mid-March?), especially before flower buds are present).  5). Here are some more specific guidelines for this pruning: a). Identify the main leader (central stem) and the lateral branches. b). Begin shaping the top by trimming back lateral branches. Aim to cut just above a node (where a leaf or bud emerges) to promote new growth. c). Cut branches shorter in the center and gradually longer as you move outward to create a rounded effect. Think of trying to construct a sphere. d). Thin out the canopy by removing some of the older, thicker branches from the center of the tree. This will encourage new growth and keeps the shape rounded. e). Regularly step back and assess the shape as you prune. The goal is a symmetrical, rounded canopy. f). Make small cuts gradually rather than large cuts all at once.  It will take a few years to achieve the rounded shape that you want. g). Light pruning should be done annually to maintain the shape, removing any stray or overly vigorous branches that disrupt the rounded form. Good luck. Please get back to me if there are any further, related questions.

responder: The Question Asker Replied August 17, 2024, 9:50 PM EDT
response: Thank you so much for you expert advice on our hydrangea tree. I understand what you are saying and it does make sense. Thank you again Sent from my iPhone On Aug 17, 2024, at 6:44 PM, Ask Extension wrote:﻿

responder: An Ask Extension Expert Replied August 17, 2024, 9:52 PM EDT
response: Glad to  be of assistance.  As I mentioned, please feel free to get back to us with any questions.  Good Luck!!