Newly planted young hydrangeas are best left alone. If your hydrangeas were planted in a location where they can grow to their estimated size at maturity without bumping and encroaching other plants, do not prune them on a regular basis. It is an annual chore that is usually not needed. Below is a link to a website that covers pruning in lots of detail. If the plants are cramped for space or cause safety concerns then yes, either prune them as needed or transplant them to a location where this chore is not often required. That suggestion is in addition to a regular chore of cutting off stems that cross, look "ugly" or dead wood (I am referring to stems that, for one reason or another, do not survive during winter and become obviously dead by May when they still have not leafed out). If the shrub develops flower buds in the Fall only (oakleafs and some macrophyllas like Nikko Blue and Tokyo's Delight as an example), you can prune after it has bloomed in Spring but before the start of July. If it is a macrophylla rebloomer like ES, you can prune at any time and not loose a whole year's worth of bloomage because eventually, it will bloom again. In the case of these rebloomers, cutting off the spent blooms forces development of new blooms so feel free to deadhead the blooms when you do not like the color/form anymore. See pruning suggestions for ES in the second link below. http://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/pruning.html http://www.endlesssummerblooms.com/en/consumer/plants/theoriginal/care/pruning Paniculatas (like Vanilla Strawberry) and Arborescens (like the Annabelle types) produce flower buds in Spring so you can prune them after they bloom thru the time when they are about to produce new flower buds again on the following year. Enjoy. You have a very nice collection. Maintain 3-4" of mulch up to the drip line and fertilize them once in Spring. Try to keep the soil as evenly moist as you can, meaning no prtiods of dry soil then moist then back to dry and so on. A 1/2 cup to 1cup of compost, composted manure or cottonseed meal should be enough for newly plan ted hydrangeas. You can also use a slow-release general purpose chemical fertilizer with a NPK Ratio of 10-10-10 (some forms of Osmocote for example). You can sprinkle some coffee grounds, liquid seaweed or liquid fish thru the growing season but stop around July to make sure that they go dormant in time for winter's arrival. Luis PS - I would love to go overboard as you did too! The only thing that keeps me under control is the lack of shaded areas and the possible addition of a 1-yr old puppy to the family. This post was edited by luis_pr on Sat, Nov 23, 13 at 13:13

Your twiggy branches may be big branches in a couple so consider why you want to prune them. I do not prune my hydrangeas unless they get too close to areas where the growth is a problem. Branches that cross may make me prune and dead stems/branches get pruned in May but other than that, I just do not prune at all. Unless there is growth that really gets under my skin for some reason. Like roses. You know those well known stems that zoom to the sky unexpectedly in what seems to be just a few days? Ha. Roses? Well, sigh, yes, I do prune those so I do not want more work if the hydrangea plant fits in the area where it is planted.

Lots of mac crowns are very woody in nature, so a hand spade, other small tools or no tools at all are not recommended. If dividing, try: 1. Dig up the plant 2. Shake some soil off the roots 3. Lay plant on its side 4. Use a sharp hatchet, large spade, hand saw or saws-all to split the crown into 2 or more parts. You'll lose a few healthy stems and shoots in the process, but it won't matter in the long run. I personally don't recommend dividing hydrangeas that haven't grown to a 7-10 gallon root ball size. Easiest time to do this is sometime in spring while the soil is still hydrated and somewhat loose, preferably toward the end of late freeze/frost spells if not after. Everything divided and transplanted by May.

"Is the pruning protocol the same for all of them? " Not at all. In fact it will vary widely by species. And fall is not the recommended time to do any pruning on woody plants. Limelight is a type of paniculata and they bloom on new growth. They can be cut back to any size you like in early spring. Oakleaf blooms on the previous season's growth so any pruning should be minimal. Again, wait until early spring Both Bloomstruck and Endless Summer are bigleaf hydrangeas that are sensitive to winter and late spring cold that can abort flowerbuds that form in late summer and early fall. In colder climates (below zone 7), they also experience a lot of stem dieback without winter protection. Many bigleaf hydrangeas flower only on second year growth so any pruning other than deadheading will eliminate flowering. Both Bloomstruck and ES are rebloomers or will also bloom on the current season's growth but those flowers won't appear until late in the growing season....and sometimes not at all. Pruning should be kept to a minimum with these as well, generally just removing any dead wood in late spring after they leaf out.