Why Hydrangea has small blooms ?
Hydrangeas are beautiful plants, especially during the flowering period. Their magnificent inflorescences immediately catch the eye. However, it sometimes happens that the hydrangea does not bloom. Why hydrangea has small blooms and are we gardeners making a mistake in the cultivation? Discover 5 reasons why hydrangea does not bloom and how to stimulate flowering hydrangeas!
Hydrangea does not bloom because of frost bite
This is a common reason. The hydrangea requires a semi-shaded position, preferably sheltered from frosty winds. In severe winters, the tops of the shoots or the entire shoots of the hydrangea freeze, as a result of which the hydrangea does not bloom. That is why it is so important to protect the hydrangea for the winter.
For this purpose, we can make a mound of garden peat, bark or use coniferous twigs. The hoods made of agrotextile, i.e. a ready-made product that we put on the hydrangea bush in order to protect it from freezing, may also be helpful.
Hydrangea doesn’t bloom because of bad pruning
The method of cutting hydrangea varies depending on the species of this plant. We will cut bouquet hydrangeas differently than garden hydrangeas. This is mainly due to the fact that they bloom on different shoots: one-year-old or two-year-old.
Trimming the bush at the wrong date will prevent the hydrangea from blooming. This is especially true of the garden hydrangea. In turn, the bouquet hydrangea that is not cut from year to year will produce less and less flowers.
So, to encourage the flowering of hydrangeas, we proceed as follows:
- in the case of garden hydrangeas, leaf hydrangeas and oak-leaved hydrangeas in early spring, only cut out their dry inflorescences just above the first pair of buds,
- in the case of hydrangeas blooming on this year’s shoots, i.e. bouquet hydrangeas and shrub hydrangeas, we trim the plants quite low each spring. Cut the shrub hydrangea to a height of about 20 cm, and cut the bouquet hydrangea to 2/3 of its length, above the 3rd or 4th bud. We also cut out all thin shoots. The bouquet hydrangeas pruned in this way will produce strong shoots ending with lush flowers from the buds left behind.
Hydrangea does not bloom due to lack of fertilization
As with most garden plants, a lack of fertilization may result in the hydrangea not blooming or its flowers being small and scarce.
Hydrangea needs proper fertilization for proper growth and development. For fertilizing hydrangeas, you can use granulated fertilizers, as well as dissolving fertilizers and in liquid form.
A properly balanced hydrangea fertilizer covers the plants’ demand for macro- and micro-nutrients, and the high potassium content improves the condition, stimulating the flowering of hydrangeas and facilitates the formation of flower buds.
Hyrangea does not bloom because is sick
Hydrangeas that are grown in poor positions or planted too densely often suffer from fungal diseases. Hydrangeas can be attacked by gray mold, powdery mildew, or leaf spot. As a result of infection with a fungal disease, the plant is weakened, its growth is inhibited and, as a consequence, flowering is impaired, or even no flowers are completely absent.
That is why it is so important to ensure appropriate conditions in the cultivation of hydrangeas as well as early and correct diagnosis of fungal disease and the implementation of appropriate spraying.
Hydrangea does not bloom because it is attacked by an aphid
When clusters of dark green to almost black insects appear on the tops of the shoots and the underside of the hydrangea leaves, it is probably an aphid. Aphids suck the sap from the hydrangea, weakening the plant, limiting its growth and causing distortion of the leaves.
The foraging of aphids is the reason why the hydrangea does not bloom or produces few flowers, often distorted. As soon as the first symptoms of the aphid feeding are noticed, the hydrangeas should be sprayed with an insecticide preparation
