Moved some Hydrangeas around

I dug out some old and planted in some new....

The old, I ended up root washing it, pruning some roots to shoehorn into some 25G pots for now till their fate to be decided.

I was for sure convinced that it would be stressed. I did break some buds on some existing canes while rootwashing it during this manhandling tedious process.. I was being gentle as one could but at some point while you're dealing with the entire mass...turning it, teasing out roots, root washing, hands soaked, wet cold workwear, you reach the point where you don't care as much...and here I am trying to get the task done and not that overly concern about bud breakage anymore. Most survived if that matters.

I did require a few, I need to catch my breath moment breaks. Lifting them around definately was no joy.

Even while it was mid-dormant, I was convinced the ones that got transplanted would be extremely stressed . Sometimes we baby our plants too much in all things gardering. Too much pruning, coddling, watering........ya know. Just eyeballing todays progression. Pleasantly surprised so-far, no signs of stress. Even new growth from the crown on them - decent leafing that appears firm with what appears to be a good sized leaf. I was expecting opposite results post transplant