Sunlight - In the South, the leaves will sun scorch if exposed to too much sun so give them sun in the mornings and shade in the afternoons. In the northern states, they can be exposed to more sunlight. Near the border with Canada, you can probably get away with full sun. Always observe how others near your home have planted their hydrangeas. The chosen location should allow the plant to grow as wide and tall as shown in the plant label. Allow for good air flow between plants by not crowding the hydrangea near other plants.

Moisture - they need a constant supply of moisture or as constant as one can practically do. To begin with, check them daily by inserting a finger into the soil to a depth of 4". If it feels almost dry or dry then water it. If it feels wet, try to determine why and take appropriate action if any is needed. Wet soil can cause fungal issues. Every time that you water, mark it in a wall calendar. After 1-2 weeks of doing this every day, review how often you had to water. Then set your sprinkler or drip irrigation to water 1g of water on the same frequency (every 2/3/4/5/etc days). Do this again when the temps change 10-15 and stay there. Apply 3-4" of mulch thru the drip line or a little beyond. Water the soil (not the leaves) early in the morning.

Fertilizer - fertilize with 1/2 cup to 1 cup of cottonseed meal, compost, manure or a general purpose slow-release fertilizer in May and late June only. It is ok to add weak fertilizers like coffee grounds, liquid seaweed or liquid fish to the soil but stop all fertilizer by July/August. This prepares the plant for dormancy and helps minimize the chance of flower buds getting zapped by early frosts in the Fall. The plant in the pot will require monthly feedings during the growing season.

Soil - acidic, well draining (but will tolerate some small amount of alkalinity). Neighbors or a nearby local nursery can tell you about this if you do not already know. Nurseries also sell kits for measuring alkalinity/acidity (called pH Kits, etc). If your soil is alkaline, amend the soil at least once in Spring using products that will acidify the soil (such as, garden sulphur, iron chelated liquids, green sand, etc)

Pruning - if you have allowed for the size shown in the plant label, you may have to prune very little. The plant label may give exact instructions depending on whether the hydrangea blooms on new wood like the ES or not. Generally, you will do fine if you prune after the plants blooms but before the month of July/August.

Wilting - will be common during the first year, especially during the summer or during windy days. If the wilting episode looks extreme, water it immediately (1/2 to 1g). Otherwise, check the soil for moisture first. If the soil is dry then water 1/2 to 1g of water. If it feels moist then wait until the next morning. If still wilted then water it. You will notice that these wilting episodes self correct after the sun goes down and will be reduced as the plant gets established in 1-2 years.

Winterizing - You basically take care of this issue when you select plants that are hardy in your zone. Kentucky has USDA Zones 5 and 6. Determine in which zone you live (ask neighbors or local close-by plant nurseries, ck in the Internet) and try to purchase plants hardy on that zone or one zone less. This way, you do not have to winter protect the shrub that is planted in the ground at all (snow and the mulch takes care of protecting during the worst of winter).

For hydrangeas that are planted out of zone outdoors, you will have to winter protect them. Once technique used encloses them in chicken wire that extends several inches away from the plant (width and height wise). Make sure that the ends of the stems are always protected since this is where tender flower buds reside. When the plant starts going dormant, fill the chicken wire enclosure with dried out leaves or mulch. Lots of leaves. A lot. Keep extra leaves handy in a plastic bag so you can add more when settling occurs in the middle of winter.

Another winter protection technique involves slowly pressing downwards the stems with a cardboard until they are flat down. Then add leaves/mulch on top to act as insulation. A few well placed rocks can help keep the cardboard in place. See the link below for a post dealing with this topic.

The potted hydrangea can be kept outside until you see that it is going dormant. Then move it into a garage like setting and water it once a week or once every two weeks. The hydrangea will be dormant but it is not dead so continue this (no fertilizers) until 1-2 weeks after the last average date of last frost for your area. Wait until late May or early June before deciding to prune any dead looking dried-out stems.

Before winterizing, add more mulch to maintain 3-4". Remove plant debris under the shrubs. The spent blooms can be left over winter or they can be deadheaded. The leaves will "disintegrate" slowly as well.

More Info? Go to http://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/

Does this help you, Jenwr?
Luis

Here is a link that might be useful: Overwintering Hydrangea macrophylla

Hi, Luis. This is wonderful information. I am printing it out to keep on hand. I am going to follow your schedule next year and see if I can get my Blushing Brides to jumpstart. Thanks.