One of the questions we are asked most often is, “Why did my Hydrangea plant not bloom?” There are several reasons why your Hydrangea might not be blooming, but before you can diagnose what is happening with your plant you need to figure out what type of Hydrangea you have. Once you have determined the type of Hydrangea you can investigate these 5 factors:

TIME

It can take some Hydrangea 2 – 5 years before they bloom.  If you are buying a Hydrangea, you might want to look for one that already has blooms or you can buy one that is large mature plant that is almost ready to bloom.  Shopping this way you will alleviate this problem.  

LIGHT

Hydrangeas need more sun than many people realize. They need at least 4 -6 hours of sunlight. This plant is not a full shade plant.  They perform best by getting the morning sun.  I discovered this issue with my new Hydrangea plant.

PRUNING

When it comes to pruning, it is really important to know what type of Hydrangea you have. There are Hydrangeas that bloom on old wood and some bloom on new wood.  The current year flower buds on an old wood Hydrangea are set on the wood from last year.  So if you prune this plant anytime from winter to spring you are potentially cutting off this year’s blooms. 

The flower buds on a new wood Hydrangea are setting on the new plant growth in the spring.  This type of Hydrangea can be pruned late winter to early spring. You will be ready for new flower blooms in the spring. 

You do not need to really prune your Hydrangea. Pick one that fits the space you have selected in your garden.  This makes your Hydrangea really low maintenance.  If you are not sure what type of hydrangea you have do not prune it!

CRITTERS

If you live in an area where there is a lot of wildlife especially deer, they literally might be pruning your Hydrangea.  Your best bet is to go to your local garden center to see if they have deterrents, they can advise you to use.

WINTER TEMPERATURES

If you have a Hydrangea that is old wood, it will be setting its flower buds for the next year, which is late summer to early fall. This means that it will have to go through the entire winter and early spring before the plant blooms. If you have a rough winter or early spring this can cause your Hydrangea not to bloom. You might find you have a mild early spring and your plant starts to wake up and then there is a cold snap, this might cause the plant not to bloom.

This Proven Winners’ guide can help you learn more about this Hydrangea issue.