It’s just about time to start the gardeners’ spring ritual of pruning. We have had a few teaser days of 50 degrees but where I live in Connecticut the footing hasn’t been safe enough to go out and do much. But it has been a good time to get things ready. I have been reading about people in the warmer areas of the country doing some pruning and although it makes me a little envious, I know enough not to rush the season. Even though we are in March, I recall last year how much snow we had in March 2018 so I can be patient a little while longer. If it's too early to get outdoors and prune for you too, here's what I would suggest. Get your tools in order. A good cleaning, oiling, and sharpening now will pay dividends later on. Make sure you have a good pair of gloves, a tarp, a bypass pruner as shown in the photo, a lopper, disinfectant spray, and/or anti-bacterial wipes at the ready. BYPASS PRUNERS THE BASIC TOOLS FOR HYDRANGEA PRUNING   ...

Not everywhere. If your hydrangeas live in warm parts of the U.S. and Europe , and the spirit moves you, you can consider pruning your new wood bloo ming hydrangeas now . It's hard to conceive of that when you live where I do as we stare down yet another frigid blast of cold air over the next few days. But for those gardeners in places like Arkansas , Atlanta , and parts of the UK , your new wood bloo mers can be cut back now .

Deer Nibbling In Winter Some of my hydrangeas are planted where deer and rabbits like to browse. The new wood bloomers are fair game which I let the wildlife "prune" for me. The big leaf hydrangeas are rebloomers which I no longer protect against the weather. I take a chance and depend on that second later-season bloom cycle. BUT, I do take pains to protect them from wildlife and prefer to work with bare stems for that job. So far, the leaves are hanging on, likely because of the prodigious rain we have had this fall.

I woke up to 37 degrees F this morning, a stark reminder that I need to prepare to wrap some of my bigleaf hydrangeas (macrophyllas) for winter. Those that aren't planted in protected locations as I described in my earlier blog posts, https://bit.ly/2lRGNlm and https://bit.ly/2A8tzZE need a little help if I want to give them their best chance of having their buds make it through the coming winter to see flowers in 2019.   Exactly what does this mean right now? SHRUBCOVERS : something I can use to safely protect the plants from ice and snow, maybe even give them a few degrees of insulation.

Look what I found on several of my PG hydrangeas: FALL WEBWORMS! FALL WEBWORMS ON HYDRANGEA PANICULATA First time in 28 years these beasties have shown up. Don't know if it's because of our unique summer conditions, or some other plant that had them and they migrated over, but now that they are here, what should I do?