What You Must Do For Your Hydrangea Plants Before Frost Hits Your Area

Hydrangeas are very popular among gardeners throughout most of the U.S., with different varieties in all but a handful of the lower 48 states. Generally, hydrangeas are sturdy enough to withstand winter weather if they are grown in the appropriate hardiness zone. However, they can still be damaged by frost and snow. As such, there are a few things you must do, ranging from watering to mulching, to take care of your hydrangeas in the winter so they don't fall victim to the harsh weather. Ideally, these steps should be taken before the first frost hits your area.

Of course, depending on where you live, the timing of the first frost can cover a wide range. In northern areas, these steps may need to be incorporated into your hydrangea garden care routine in the fall months, while further south, you may be able to wait until close to New Year's. The key is to know your first frost date and make sure to take preventative measures to protect your hydrangeas before it hits.

When it comes to protecting your hydrangeas from frost, it's important to give them a good watering. This is actually the same protocol for protecting trees in your yard from frost as well. Since moist soil will resist the cold better than dry ground, the roots of the plants will be better insulated. As far as how often to water your hydrangeas during the winter, so long as the ground is not frozen, you should consistently water them to keep the soil moist, unless it's frozen. Once a blanket of snow covers the ground, the snow will actually serve as insulation for the ground.

While watering and keeping the ground moist will help insulate the root structure, there are a couple of other steps you can take to insulate your hydrangeas. First, add a layer of mulch around the base of the plants. Usually, a couple of inches of organic mulch material, such as shredded leaves or pine needles, is adequate. This layer of mulch will actually help in a couple of ways. For one, it will enhance the moisture retention of the soil. Secondly, it will provide an insulating layer.

The other thing you should do is add some sort of protection against wind and falling snow, sleet, or hail. This can be done by wrapping the plants in a breathable fabric such as burlap or frost cloth. To keep the weight of the cloth and any accumulated ice or snow off the plants, you can use wooden or metal stakes to prop up the cloth. Some gardeners also make a chicken-wire cage or use wooden crates to enclose the plants and drape the cloth over the structure. No matter how you go about it, this step only needs to be done when severe winter weather is imminent. The plants should be uncovered as soon as the temperature rises above freezing.

While it is a good idea to take the above steps to protect your hydrangeas from frost, there are some things you should avoid doing as well. For one, while it may seem natural to prune your hydrangeas before the frost hits, you should refrain from doing so. If you have new wood hydrangeas, which bloom in the spring, you can do a light touch-up pruning by removing dried blooms. However, the main pruning should occur later in the winter. Old wood varieties should only be pruned after they bloom in spring and summer; you should never prune these plants in winter, or else they may not bloom at all. That said, it is prudent to remove any damaged, dead, or diseased limbs and branches. 

As winter approaches, you should also quit fertilizing your hydrangeas. Again, you may be tempted to fertilize in order to give them a dose of nutrients to fortify themselves against the harsh conditions. However, this can have a detrimental effect on the plant. Fertilizing too late in the year can result in new growth that isn't hardy enough to withstand the winter weather and is much more susceptible to frost damage.