Q: The new leaves on my hydrangea shrub recently turned brownish on the tips, and they look a bit withered. What can I do to save it?
A: The shrub is probably fine and you shouldn’t need to do anything for now. It’s likely cold damage, from overnight temperatures below or near freezing. Bigleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla) tend to be particularly eager to leaf-out as soon as the weather warms in spring, often too early to avoid frost damage in years with fluctuating temperatures. This inconveniently early emergence is encouraged when plants grow near warmth-retaining materials like a stone retaining wall, solid fence, or house wall.
Give the shrub time to produce more new growth to cover any eyesore leaves. You don’t need to prune damaged leaves off, but you can if they’re too bothersome, once the plant is fuller with more growth. Be aware that, once dormancy is broken, flower buds on the stems are also vulnerable to frost/freeze damage, and that might not be as evident as the singed edges or distorted-leaf symptoms on expanding foliage. If the shrub doesn’t flower this summer, it could be due to spring cold injury, or branches that were pruned back before determining if the bare tips were actually dead.
In the future, you can try using an old sheet or pillowcase (any fabric; avoid plastic) to cover the plant for the night if the forecast calls for temperatures close to freezing. Garden centers that have the ability to protect tender plants can tip pots over and cover them with a thick horticultural felt, which gives the plants a few degrees of protection due to the cover blocking frost and trapping some warmth radiating off the ground. (You can do this with potted plants that have broken dormancy too early, but in home settings it’s more practical to just move them temporarily closer to a sheltered wall instead, or put them in a shed or garage for the night.)
By Miri Talabac, Horticulturist, University of Maryland Extension Home & Garden Information Center. Miri writes the Garden Q&A for The Baltimore Sun and Washington Gardener Magazine. Read more by Miri.
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My hydrangea leaves look good but I don’t have any buds this year. We did not cut the dead flowers until the spring. The growth is coming from new growth and last years flower stalks are dead and can easily be broken off. I don’t recall it blossoming every other year.
Thanks for this helpful tip on hydrangeas! I didn’t know cold nights could hurt new leaves like that. As a fencing contractor, I’ll also keep this in mind for gardens near fences. Really appreciate the easy advice—great info for any plant lover!