Farmhouse hydrangeas are popular in many local gardens, and the Endless Summer variety blooms all summer long. But many hobby gardeners are unsure how to cut their beautiful and decorative plant, because this is different for the different species. But if you follow the instructions, you will enjoy your Endless Summer for a long time, a cut is not always necessary here. When it should nevertheless be cut back is explained here.
time
Farmer's hydrangeas of the Endless Summer variety actually do not need pruning at all. This is not absolutely necessary for these plants. Nevertheless, it encourages the shrub to produce more flowers if the withered flowers are regularly cut. The following should be observed when the time is right for pruning.
- if pruned, then in late winter
- February is ideal for this
- since it has to be pruned before the new shoots
- frost-free and dry day
- Otherwise, cold and wet penetrate through the interfaces
- an overcast day
- Sun exposure can promote drying
- flowers regularly withered over the summer
Unlike the other varieties of farmer's hydrangea, the Endless Summer flowers not only on the previous year's shoots, but also on the young ones.
cutting tool
The right tool
In order to choose the right tool for the cut, it is also important to know what size the peasant hydrangea has already reached. Because the shrubs can become very large in width and height with increasing age, especially if they have been cultivated in the garden bed and not in the bucket. Of course, larger plants also have more lignified branches. Therefore, the following tool should be chosen as follows.
- Secateurs or pruning shears for thin shoots
- also suitable for flower cutting
- Pruning shears for thicker, woody shoots
- pruning saw for large bushes
It is important that the tool is sharpened, cleaned and disinfected before cutting. For this purpose, pure alcohol from the pharmacy or a disinfectant from the garden store is usually used. If you can't sharpen your tools yourself, you can also have this done by the customer service in a gardening shop. Tools that are not sharp or that have not been cleaned and disinfected should never be used, as this damages every plant. Bacteria and fungi penetrate much faster either directly when pruning or later via the frayed areas and thus damage the entire shrub from the inside.
Do not cut
Do not prune young peasant hydrangeas
If a peasant hydrangea has just been planted, it should hardly be cut. As a rule, the shrubs are not pruned for the first time until they are five or six years old. Otherwise, the following applies to the young hydrangea.
- only branches that disturb
- that is, anything that grows beyond the bush
- cut to desired length
- Be careful not to remove too many buds
- these are on the bush before they sprout
- then the flower falls out
- Branches crossing inside
- hinder each other
- Time for this before budding in February
But even with young shrubs, it is important to always remove the withered flowers immediately so that they can bloom endlessly over the summer.
spring pruning
In spring, or better yet in late winter in February, before the new shoots, the peasant hydrangeas are pruned. This is always different for the different varieties of the many hydrangeas. The Endless Summer, for example, usually does not need a pruning, but if one is to be done, then the following procedure must be followed.
- remove any faded flowers
- often these are left standing over the winter
- cut just above the first buds
- Thin out very dense shrubs
- cut several old shoots at the base
- usually a third of all main shoots
- used to rejuvenate the plant
- remove frozen and old shoots
- Shoots that are no longer green under the bark
- this can be recognized by scratching
If a hydrangea is pruned back too much, this can damage the flowering in the same year. Because the new buds are formed in the previous year and could fall victim to a pruning. Therefore, it makes more sense to cut off some of the old branches every year than just to make a strong pruning every few years.
particularities
Special features when editing the Endless Summer
However, the Endless Summer peasant hydrangea, which is a pink or blue variety, and its white sister, The Bride, have a special feature compared to the other peasant hydrangeas. This makes it much easier to prune these varieties, as mistakes are virtually impossible when pruning these species. So there are the following special features to consider.
- can be cut back as much as you like in spring
- clear out the middle in summer
- even heavily pruned branches will sprout again
- then bear flowers again in the same year
- However, flowering can start later
For this reason, a stronger pruning should only be done if it is really necessary. Otherwise, the Endless Summer variety of peasant hydrangeas should also be carefully cut back only the faded inflorescences in February.
pruning
Radical, strong pruning
When should or must a radical, strong pruning be carried out? This is always the case when a bush of farmer's hydrangeas has not been properly cared for for years. This often happens when a garden with an old stock is taken over. The farmer's hydrangeas have not been cut for a long time, old flowers are still on the bush and many old, dried up or frozen branches and shoots have not been removed for a long time. Then it is time to cut the shrub back vigorously. The peasant hydrangea must also be cut back radically if it has suffered frost damage over a very frosty winter. The radical pruning should be done as follows.
- trim the entire shrub down to the base
- use a saw for this
- the shrub is very large, also chainsaw
- new shoots quickly form from the base
- For large hydrangeas, work from the outside in
- first remove long shoots and branches
- so the base can be reached better
Peasant hydrangeas tolerate a strong pruning down to the base very well, especially if many dead shoots and branches have formed on them before the cut, on which no new shoots and buds have formed. Of course, after such a vigorous pruning, flowering in the summer must be avoided. But next year the hydrangea will shine again with many new flowers.
Withered flowers
The withered flowers should be removed regularly over the summer to encourage new growth. Because, as the name of this variety already suggests, it blooms again and again throughout the summer. It is also beneficial to cut a few beautiful flowers for the vase from time to time, this also stimulates the formation of new flowers. However, many hydrangea connoisseurs leave the withered blossoms in autumn so that the newly formed buds underneath the blossom are protected from the cold. Accents can also be set in a dreary conservatory. The ideal flower cut for farmer's hydrangeas looks as follows.
- when the flowers have withered
- cut right on the fork
- Only cut off the shoot briefly
- new buds have already formed underneath
- fresh flowers for the vase
- Cut longer shoots with leaves
- you can also cut right at the base
- this brings more light and air in the middle
- promotes growth from the base
If the flowers are cut for the vase, this not only has the advantage of a beautiful flower decoration in the house. At the same time, this also stimulates the other shoots to produce more flowers and the plant is thinned out a little overall, which is tantamount to a rejuvenation cut.