I find that the easiest way is to let them dry on the plant. When they become papery to the touch and have completed their color change, just cut them off and bring them inside. No water necessary and no crinkling. I believe the instructions you are referring to are for deadheading the plant, however, you can cut the stems at any lenth you like but ofcourse you will be cutting off the stem that will produce next year's flowers. If I want a dried long stem, I buy the wooden florist stems at the craft store. By the way, this drying procedure works better with fall (late) blooms as opposed to early ones... Good luck....yg

I've gotten very long stemmed dryed flowers from Nikkos by waiting til about the first frosts and then cutting the whole flowering cane back to the ground. There would still be plenty of canes that had never flowered left on the plant for next year. I'd overwinter them. One problem was that the remaining canes were just one year old and the plant would flop especially bad the next season.

In Ostrich's Ohio, if her winter's are like mine, her Endless Summer will die back to the ground so she and I may not be losing anything by taking ours all the way back to the ground in the Fall.

And maybe you'll end up with more flowers next spring because you've cut it back and maybe that would induce the buds at the crown to become next year's flower. And these buds close to the ground would perhaps have a much greater chance of making it through the winter. This is some part speculation on my part.

And who was it that had the wonderful idea to start cuttings in the fall from those tips with flowering potential and grow them under lights in the house to have flowering hydrangea cuttings in the middle of winter?

Most of my hydrangeas have started to turn papery and take on their fall colors. I love how they are always changing and from Spring til Fall they're putting on a great show.

You've got me thinking about dryed flowers, dyeing, wreath making....

Hay.

Thanks, yellowgirl and Hay! I really appreciate your input.

I am trying to deadhead them now, because I want these babies to re-bloom! So I am cutting many of them now. I hope I am doing the right thing!

Hay, you're right - our NE Ohio winter is harsh and the whole plant will just die back completely. That's exactly why I chose Endless Summer - I chose it for this hardiness.

P.S. Hay, I'm a "he".... just FYI! LOL

ostrich==Sorry, I just posted under Forever & Ever and referred to you as a "she". Shame on me! Guess that is why we are suppose to put more on our Journal page.

My grandfather was the gardner in our family and his hyderangers were shared with most of the commuity. He would split them in late September, also he taught us all to cut them wayyyyyyy down come Fall and bed them. He was in Maine-I don't see anyone else saying that they cut them way down, is this only for a certain kind? His were continuously beautiful for over 50 years as a hedge.

I find the following the best way of drying Hydrangeas - I've been doing it this way for a number of years: -
In the autumn after the heads of Hydrangeas have changed colour, say from blue to burgundy or white to pink, is the time to cut them for dried flowers. Cut them on a fine day when the flowers are as dry as possible. Remove leaves and put in water. After a week or so the flower texture will become papery. Throw away water.
They will remain perfectly good throughout winter without any more moisture.

jleek, don't worry! I guess "ostrich" is kinda hard to guess, huh?! ROTFLOL!

Shirley, thanks for the tip. I know this sounds really stupid, but do you mean you put the entire cut flower in water, or just the stem? Hope you don't mind this silly question.... thanks!

I had a dinner party this weekend and thought they'd make a nice centerpiece. I picked four of them and they looked lovely! Even though the stems were about five or six inches long, they looked great tied together in a small vase. I'm going to enjoy them indoors for another week or so before I dry them.

I've found ES to be a pretty dismal dryer. Flowers really krinkle and shrinkle. Ya can't have everything.