Greetings, I have a hydrangea which is about 2 years old. When I bought it at the nursery it had just started to bloom with the most beautiful violet flowers. It is a mophead type plant, posibably h. macrophylla but that's just a guess. We had a very hot, dry July and August here in Seattle so it may have dried out. It is in full sun and humas rich soil next to a fence. My question is: How do I get it to bloom again next spring, and will it come back with the same violet color? It has small buds on it now and most of the leaves are still green. The plant is small, about 20 inches. Thanks for any suggestions.
If it grew well last summer and now has big flower buds on the tips of the branches, bloom can be expected next year. If it did poorly, wilting in the dry conditions then that could explain a lack of bloom. It could also be too young and small to bloom well, in the same fashion that small camellia plants often come from the nursery budded and blooming, then take a vacation for some years before resuming flowering after building up some additional size. Apparently the cultural regime at the wholesale nursery promotes early budding, after they are shipped out and planted in a home garden they are no longer getting the same care.
I agree, if there are viable buds on it now, those will most likely produce flowers next year. The colours of the mophead "flowers" depend on the soil pH. The flowers tend towards blue if the soil is acidic (low pH) and pink if the soil is alkaline (higher pH). The important element here is aluminium. Aluminium becomes less available as the soil pH rises. Adding aluminium sulfate as part of the fertilising program may help. The mophead hydrangeas in our yard do not do well in full sun. The best position seems to be morning or late afternoon sun. The flowers tend to fade quickly in full sun and with some varieties, actually scorches. Moving your hydrangea out of full sun into partial shade may be an option.
Here is a good web site describing colour manipulation in mophead hydrangeas http://www.flowersbulbs.com/manipulatecolor.cfm
I hope you have plently of space for it. The best way to get lots of flowers is to not prune it at all. I have seen them in full sun but you have to mulch well and be sure it is watered.
