One, planted many years ago, has climbed 50 feet up the bark of a towering Siberian elm. I placed the second plant in a patio along a partly shady wall of my house about 10 years ago. It has become a magnificent vine, needing yearly pruning to keep it within bounds. Two years ago I bought a third H. petiolaris and planted it at the side of a shed where there is bright sunshine in the morning and deep shade in the afternoon. It has taken hold, but it will be a while longer before I see whether it climbs up the shed.
Climbers take time to establish themselves.
In our time-pressed era, the fastest way to have hydrangeas is to buy young plants from nurseries, but, once established, the plants can be propagated. One way is to dig up a mature clump in early spring, split it up with a shovel, and replant the divisions. Another is by layering. You scrape off a ring of bark from a low-lying limb and bury the exposed part. This will produce a new plant.