I bought beautiful hydrangeas from a nursery for my patio and they have lasted about 2 months. The blooms have died. If I deadhead the blooms, will I get more or is that it? I live upstairs in a condo so have no yard and must use a balcony--so there is no way I am able to plant outside and wait until next year.
Hardiness Zone: 8b
Fran from Dallas, TX
Answer:
Fran,
I'm afraid your hydrangeas are done blooming. Two months is a good long time to see blooms, though, especially since you have no way of knowing how long they were blooming at the nursery before you purchased them.
Hydrangeas only bloom once per season, so deadheading them will not encourage a second flush of flowers. The good news is that the blooms are one of the easiest to dry, so you keep on enjoying the flowers for months to come.
To air dry your hydrangea blooms, simply leave the spent blooms on their stems until late summer. As the season progresses, the blooms will take on an aged look and may start to display some unique colors as they dry. To completely dry them, simply remove the flowers from the stems and cut them to the desired length. There is no need to hang them upside down to dry, just remove any unwanted leaves, and arrange them as you wish.
Ellen
About The Author: Ellen Brown is an environmental writer and photographer and the owner of Sustainable Media, an environmental media company that specializes in helping businesses and organizations promote eco-friendly products and services. Contact her on the web at http://www.sustainable-media.com
For the easiest reach of information go to your state website for their extension service. Most all questions can be answered within their webpages, or the ask/contact us will help with the area you are from.
2nd. The breakdown of adding the nail to the soil (hence the rust) will take decades to get to that point unless you do some chemical applications with that. Not being GREEN. Most nails are made of different metals (zinc, alloy, etc) or combined metals that I would challenge their ability to do the blue thing. Gardening applications may have what you need in a purer form---something missing from your soil, Add _____. Making our earth and the things that beautiful it does not have to take destructive measures or toxins.
I have news for you beyond the clipping off of the flowers. Last year I received a beautiful lavender-blue hydrangea for Mother's Day. I wanted to plant it outdoors but never got to it. However, I kept it on my back stoop where it got a couple hours of sun, but mostly shade. I watered it faithfully, but by October the stems were almost bare, with a hint of new leaves that never really fully grew in. On a whim, I decided to repot it in a larger pot, bring it indoors and put it in a sunny window for the winter and see what would happen.
The leaves started to grow, and by Feb. I could see little flower buds starting! By the end of March I was blessed with several beautiful lavender-blue-pink blossoms!! I had some questions and found a website (hydrangeashydrangeas.com) where I received a wonderful reply from an expert who suggested I keep the plant potted (not to plant it outside) and just do the same thing this year as I did before. If it continually requires a larger pot, she suggested I cut back the root system and the stems when I repot it, and that will keep its growth in control.
You might want to do the same with your plant! Marilyn from Wisconsin
Last September or October, I cut all mine all down. This spring I had an awesome huge bush! They bloomed like crazy. They're still out there blooming away. I'm gonna do the same again this Sept/Oct. My hydrangeas have been blooming for over 15 years,but this year they were PEAK. dru
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Request: Should I Deadhead a Hydrangea?
Archived on 04/28/2008
I've inherited a big stand of hydrangea. I have no idea what cultivar they might be. What do I do for them? Deadhead last year's blossoms? Feed? Ignore em?
Thanks, LMSINGH from Hudson, WI
Answers:
RE: Should I Deadhead a Hydrangea?
We bought a house with hydrangeas and I asked a lot of questions also. The first year I did what some people said and I only cut the dried blossoms off a right before or after the first freeze(I forget) and not much stem, my hydrangeas were much too long last summer. So last year I cut the blossoms off again in the fall and about 1/2 of the stem got snipped off too. I'm much happier with the looks of my hydrangea plants this year. I have not put any fertalizer on them. But I'll ask about this at the local garden store. Good-Luck (05/14/2007)
By Jan
RE: Should I Deadhead a Hydrangea?
I do very very little to mine. In the spring before they start to "leave" I snip off all the dead flowers and anything that looks "yucky" I want mine big as to block the view. I don't feed them anything, they are very hardy. I live in WV, it may be different where you live? (05/15/2007)
