Just snapped off a few more from the mix Martin sent-wow,some are on the nice mild side with a slow hotness that builds after swallowing and others are on a medium hot side right from the first crunch.Granddaughter tried a few and came to the same oppinion. Very nice mix I have Martin.Wish I had the variety names LOL,at least I know which are the Martins Old Heirloom and the 1s without scapes may be Inchellium-cant wait for my 1st taste of a clove from each to compare.I really liked that surprise of the very mild tasteing scapes that built to a hot peak after swallowing. **just a note to go with the above post about the olive oil for ks=it may not be safe to freeze the scapes mixed with olive oil,add the oil later after you thaw the scapes.Others have posted about oil stuff going bad or something if frozen with mixed veggie stuffs,I may be wrong.maybe others can clarify this a bit. Bill

I whack my type IIIs off at six inches because I prefer new growth up from the ground rather than from last years vines but most won't cut that severely. It is up to you. You can start at the ground and go up to the closest set of buds and cut just above them.

Where do you live and what kind of hydrangeas are they? Different types of hydrangeas will sustain different pruning practices, depending on how they bloom (old or new wood, occasionally both). In milder climates - like mine - buds on viable wood are already present but it may take longer for them to be very noticeable in colder areas. To be on the safe side so as not to entirely remove any flowering potential for this season, you can always wait a while before removing stems that no longer show any life to confirm they are in fact dead. We could be even more specific if we knew what type of hydrangeas you are referring to, though.

Before first frost. I always keep an eye on the weather and cut it about a week before and stick the cuttings in 5-gallon buckets to root.