How much sun is it in? And when you do water the plant, how do you water it?

Looks to me like heat stress combined with insufficient water.

It is not in too much sun. The fence faces west so it blocks a lot of the afternoon sun and there is a tree that also provides some shade. I generally water it at the ground and roots.

If it is in not that much sun then the explanation must be not enough water. Hydrangea is Greek for water vessel and these shrubs do not like to dry out at all. The hotter it is, the more they transpire and the more soil moisture they require.

What is important to know is not where you water it but how often, for how long and with what sort of implement. What you want to achieve is a consistently uniformly moist soil all the way through the depth and spread of the root system. Additionally, a good thick mulch will help to conserve soil moisture and prevent the current heat wave from drying it excessively.

Does the plant perk up over night and only wilt during the day? In my last garden I inherited a west facing hydrangea and in my ignorance at the time added another. They wilted every afternoon all summer but with daily watering always perked up for the next day and looked great otherwise.

Also, as gardengal mentions, consistent and sufficient watering is key to hydrangeas. How do you konw you have watered enough and what is your watering schedule?

Looking at the leaves, I would suspect not enough water. If we don't have much rain (and we are in drought conditions here in Northern Virginia), I water as soon as the leaves start to wilt. They bounce right back. Yours look to be very thirsty.

The Seattle climate is such that this is a recurring summer drought area. We get virtually NO rainfall from June through September and this year, we are entering the summer at a 15% deficit compared to averages. That combined with our current heat wave makes frequent watering of hydrangeas - even well established ones - imperative.

My personal experience with hydrangea is to take whatever you think is an extremely generous amount of water and then double or triple it, and that might be enough. But even then, they'll still droop in sun. I have mine on a drip line which I run for 4-6 hours on average 3x a week, even during periods of lots of rain.

It is definitely dry and wilting. Not sure about the leaf discoloration. Whether it is in more or less sun, Hydrangeas just don't like dry or heat. Aren't they ideally suited to coastal locations and cooler summers? Rainy areas and shade?

I have 10 Hydrangeas in my yard....which surprises me....lol. I never counted them before. If you are like the rest of the country you are having heat and maybe not a lot of rain. That's what I have anyway. The Hydrangeas did very well all through April and May and half way through June the rain stopped and the heat started and now they all wilt every day unless I water them daily just about. And even doing that, some of the flowers are scorched.

When it is early or late and not blazing hot, I've sat out there with the hose on shower in a folding chair and hand water around the base. When it's been too hot to do that, I've left a sprinkler running on them.

I've heard the suggestion to take empty plastic water gallons and put a couple of holes in the bottom, fill 3 -5 of them and just sit them around the ground around the plant. Or hand water when it's the coolest part of the day. We are having a heat wave, I expect it will be done sooner or later. At that point, I plan to clean them up - pull off any ugly leaves, cut back any dead stems, cut off any scorched flowers and let them rebloom if possible.

I have two panniculatas and they do amazing in this heat even in full sun. The mopheads - even in shade wilt without a lot of watering. Still even the paniculatas if I don't keep watering start having yellow leaves. OH....and a thick layer of mulch would help it not to dry out as fast. I have some mulch around some, but now that I think of it....I need to be more attentive to that aspect. After the heat wave dissipates - cardboard or grocery bags or newspaper covered with 3 inches thick bark mulch - put holes in the cardboard to allow water through. That will probably help a lot. Thats' what I'm going to try to do.

PM2, I'm afraid to say the heatwave is far from over in the east coast. We may get a little relief Friday with some "forecasted" rain in the high 80s but quickly goes back up to above 90s most of next week with no rain again. I have been on a watering spree this whole week and am dreading doing the same thing over next week. Also hydrangeas grow all over Japan which is much hotter and humid than our east coast summers but does have a rainy season in June which helps. Although I do find that H serratas are more tolerant of sun than H. macrophyllas, at least mine that grows in 8 hours of full sun don't show much signs of stress.

Hi Heruga, Exactly what our forecast is too....the heat wave continues into next week. That's interesting that Hydrangea grow in Japan where it is hotter and more humid. I wonder what the difference is. I can only speak to my own experience. I have a LOT of mature trees surrounding my small 1/4 acre lot. One lot line that is barely 100ft long has 6 spruce trees, a Sycamore and a White Pine tree all lined up 5ft away from my fence. In the neighboring yard they have three 40+ yr old Silver Maples one that is 10ft away from my lot line. I have a 35+ yr old large Maple in the NW corner of my lot and a twin in the NE corner, another neighbor has a 70+ year old silver maple 5 ft away from my SW corner of my lot and ... that doesn't count 4 more various mature trees. So, that is the only explanation I come up with for why my garden is particularly dry. But I do hear a lot of gardeners complain about their Hydrangeas wilting in the heat.

I wonder, when you look at the photo that PDXHome posted....what do you think is the problem with that Hydrangea?

There really isn't any question as to why the OP's hydrangea looks the way it does. The OP lives in Portland, OR; the entire PNW is a recurring summer drought area, receiving almost NO rain from June through September; and is currently experiencing a heat wave (like much of the country). The plant is not getting enough water. The ground looks bone dry and there is no mulch to prevent soil moisture evaporation. And the OP has yet to fill us in on how thoroughly or frequently the hydrangea is watered.

PM2, Japan’s rainy season in June definitely helps. In the wild they grow in forests and along rivers which is ideal for their shade and moisture requirements. Cloudy days are also more frequent in the summer in Japan too.

Your property is literally roots and roots lol. I feel your pain though since I used to garden for a bit at my dad’s house before moving out. His was also 1/4 acre surrounded by oaks, red and norway maples, eastern red cedars and was hard digging into the soil.

I am looking at the pics again and Idk if it’s my eyes but the surface of the ground looks very moist? Like op watered it so much that some of the mulch got washed out in certain spots-where you can see the black. Especially if op is watering it from the roots as he/she said. I don’t know, in my experience with hydrangeas when they wilt from dry soil, even just a little bit of surface watering seems to perk them up. They rewilt again rather quickly though because it dries out again so fast with just watering the surface. This is for hydrangeas grown in shade, I’m aware they wilt no matter what in the sun. I’m curious what time of the day op took this pic and whether the pic was taken immediately after it was watered or not. If the ground is truly moist then it probably gets more sun than op thinks it does and it might just be a mid day wilt.

Hello there. Are your hydrangeas fairing an better since the atrocious heat last week? Your hydrangea's reaction to the heat wave is typical, as most varieties are particularly sensitive to extreme temperatures, particularly when they exceed 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

Going off of what PrarieMoon said, to help your plant manage these conditions, it's important to continue watering deeply, ideally early in the morning or late in the evening to minimize evaporation. This ensures that the water reaches the roots where it's needed most. Adding a thick layer of mulch around the base of your hydrangea can also be beneficial, as mulch helps keep the soil moist and cool. If feasible, providing temporary shade during the hottest parts of the day - using items such as shade cloth or a large umbrella - can prevent leaf scorch and help the plant retain moisture. During heat waves, it's advisable to avoid fertilizing, as it can promote new growth that's more vulnerable to heat damage. With proper care and adjustments based on weather conditions, your hydrangea can recover from heat stress once temperatures normalize.

Heruga, I thought I responded to your comment because I was telling someone else what you said about my yard being ‘literally roots and roots’ but I see I didn't. Your Dad seems to have had my property! LoL I just thought your expression really summed it up well. Actually, it made me feel better. I don’t really consider how difficult it is with so many roots in such a small space, but it really is.

They grow along rivers….of course!

I have been watering because everyone else had a lot of rain around us but we’ve only had 1/4 inch in a month. Tomorrow I am going to give them a good soaking and more mulch because the heat wave is back on Wednesday, as Jordan said, that is the best thing to do for them. Next year, I am going to do better and give them a thicker mulch right from the start

With really dry summers, the hydrangea look awful toward the end of the season, but they have come back fine the next spring.

PM2, seems like so! But I do miss gardening in that property though even with all those roots. We've been having a pretty awful summer too but the rain seems to be somewhat catching up now at least in NJ. Mostly quick downpours though and not consistent all day rains which we really need. Any bed with big trees around it dries out real fast and I find myself watering it within 5 days of rain. Wow 1/4 a month sounds close to desert level climate. Hopefully this drought ends soon. This coming week looks like we can expect some precipitation in the east coast. Hopefully a good one.

For my hydrangea serratas I have 2 inches of mulch in full sun location (8 hours) and they never seem to dry out.