There's just one root system. The energetic root went up out of the ground on my side, through the fence about 10" above the ground and proceeded to grow a beautiful long vine on the neighbor's side. So I guess it's really a pruning question: if I can't get this guy back by removing fence boards to pull it through, and I want to prune it off, when is the right time to do it? ~Melissa in Canada [my garden blog] [my garden art/junk] Thanks for your help.

Thanks for the input. It's really good to hear from other gardeners. There is no doubt it is a climbing hydrangea and was labelled correctly, but I appreciate that thought. The zone thing is interesting, and frankly I never thought of that. It doesn't get dieback from the winter though (unlike my magnolia and other things that are a little out of zone) and gets a snowcover that covers all the height to date. The trellis that has been behind it for the hydrangea's life - likely more like 15 years, was not purchased trellis but a rough one my husband made out of hand cut 1x3 inch pieces. Now, the pieces were spaced 8-10 inches apart so perhaps this is part of the problem, not enough surface area to "grip". Just a few months ago this trellis had to come down for repairs on the shed, but there wer very few little aerial rootlets clinging anyway - only the largest of the about 20 different stems coming up from the base seemed to have any. Unfortunately the shed is siding, and I don't have another place to relocate the climbing hydrangea, so I guess what I need is some sort of solid fence like trellis with slats closer together. Any suggestions on fertilizing/soil amendements?

hi there, i have 3 climbing hydrangeas, 2 are in their 3rd summer, and one is in it's second summer. the two older ones are on the south side of our (stucco)house, with one getting more sun and one getting a little afternoon shade. the one that gets a little more shade is taking off this year, almost 10-12 ft high. the other one is a little slower, i suspect that the additional sun and a little less water due to it's location might be why. still blooming and happy though, and filling in quite a bit from the bottom this year, but only at about 5 feet. the two year old north sider is also growing, at about 5-6 feet now. i think they are worth the wait, i've seen some big established ones around and they are beautiful. i also have a moonlight schizophragma planted next to the taller of the 3 yr old hydrangeas, and that is taking off, much higher than any of them, and is really beautiful. you may want to plant one of those too, for quicker gratification, and also to "extend" the bloom time, since they tend to bloom a couple of weeks after the hydrangea, and climbs in the same way. i think the combination is really nice too. good luck!

Sorry you have had to wait for a response.......I think your post just got overlooked :-) I think your climber looks in fine condition for a first year plant!! The browning of the stems is perfectly normal.....as you assmed, this is just an indication of the natural aging of the plant. And the spider webbing is pretty normal as well :-) At this time of year, spiders set up housekeeping wherever they can - I have them all over my shrubs. And I also tend to ignore a lot of leaf issues at this time of year as well. By the end of the growing season - and one that has had some unusual weather conditions - leaves are often less than pristine in appearance and the odd brown splotches are just showing the effects of this. You might want to search the forum archives for other posts on climbing hydrangeas to gather more info.......there have been many excellent discussions. This is a plant that requires a fair amount of patience and you might have to wait several years before seeing any flowers. And it is not technically a 'vine' - the plant has no capacity to wind or twine around a support structure. It adheres to surfaces with root hairs that emerge all along the stems, so is best with a flat, wide and fairly textural surface on which to grow or adhere its stems to. And if provided with good growing conditions, it can get very large (30'+) and quite heavy.