I see a couple of buds ('broccoli') at the 7 o'clock position. Where geographically are you located? And did you winter protect?

I'm in the Bronx, NY. I did cover much of the plant with fallen leaves during the winter. And yes, there are 4 buds but I was hoping for more.

Either you need to wait a little more and-or winter was harsh/dry and-or the winter protection was insufficient.

I hope your right; my father gave his mother, my Grandmother, a hydrangea plant when he was a young man, I have fond memories of that plant; they are both gone a long time now but the sight of that plant is fresh in my mind. I planted this one in my backyard for him. I'll wait and repost when the blooms appear

So how old is this hydrangea in the picture? Looks so big and healthy!

It also looks perfectly round and symmetrical which leads me to ask about any pruning that has been done- when might that have taken place?

It is an older plant but it was moved 2 springs ago and didn't bloom last year because of the move, or so I was told. It did bloom nicely in the original spot. I pruned it early spring; mistake? I also added the small shelf and the hanging plant only recently to deflect the heat that was reflecting off the fence

I'm out on the East End. Strange to report guys. My old mac's look just like the 1st pic and I've started paying real close attention to what months various flowers bloom - the timing of blooms per se- tulips, then the alliums, then comes memorial day, so the annuals, etc.

Anyhow, what is really ODD for me is that I have had blooms on new hydra. plantings that are the total opposite of the 1st pic in this thread as well since early-mid May. The entire perimeter of the shrubs are all in blooms.

I've been scratching my head on this one for awhile....it's such a stark contrast.

My concern arose because my neighbor's hydrangea's are blooming nicely.

Well, the pruning in spring sure didn't help .......unless all you removed was deadwood. Pruning then would have removed all the early season (old wood) flowers if winter/early spring cold didn't get them first. What it looks like is there are buds on a few stems you missed or those are flower buds being produced on this season's growth if that is the type of mac you have. Do you know what cultivar it is?

I have in my calendar to prune the hydrangea in February; don't remember if I did it then or not. I did cut back what I thought was the dead wood in early spring.

If you have warm days, and then a freeze (we had that in Jan/Feb many of the past winters; I'm in Boston suburb) the buds that formed last fall on your hydrangeas will die. I have dozens of hydrangeas that used to bloom alot, every year. 4 of the past 5 years, very few blooms. (Except 1 side of the house which is well protected.) I'm going to pull some out in the fall and plant Annabelle and more Limelight - they form buds in the spring.

Amanda - the white's are reliable as hell. In early spring, sometimes I'll prune out 18-24 inches and they keep coming back. The blues do it for me though.....I know it's a labor of love. I will say this and maybe it's just 1 year growers luck. I planted a good handful of ~rebloomers~ and while not complimenting the reblooming aspect, but just the cultivar/species itself, Lets Dance, Bloomstruck and ES and doing amazing bloomwise for me on it's 1st year. I'm hoping it will produce the same every year forward. It's been quite some time I've had Mac's that look like 85% flowers and 15% foliage

What kind of "winter protection" should I provide this coming winter? When should I protect it and when should I uncover the plant? (I am obviously a novice, but I do try and I do enjoy)

“I pruned it early spring; mistake?“. Big leafed hydrangeas/Hydrangea macrophylla have a spring bloom on buds that were formed during the previous growing season. If you pruned them in winter, you will have cut off all those flower buds, so for this kind of hydrangea, a February pruning is absolutely a mistake. Only prune to remove dead or problem branches, or immediately after bloom has finished, if you want flowers next year and it is one that only blooms in spring. Generally speaking most of these don’t need annual pruning as long as you have planted it where there is room to grow. Depending on cultivar, some big leafed hydrangeas will rebloom over the summer into fall.

I think when Alan refers to whites being OK with spring pruning, he is referring to other species such as smooth hydrangea/H. arborescens like Annabelle or panicled hydrangea/H. paniculata like Limelight, both of which form their blossom buds in spring and have summer bloom. Yours is a big leaf hydrangea so no winter or early spring pruning except to remove damage.

Here is a link to threads from a search in the Hydrangea forum for winter protection. There are a bunch of ideas on how to protect them from deep cold in winter and late spring frosts, but many aren’t particularly attractive and so may not be desirable if this plant is in a prominent spot.

https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/hydra/query/“Winter-protection”/nqrw