Q&A for How to Grow Hydrangea from Cuttings

Hydrangeas are considered fast growing and can grow as much as 25 inches or more each year.

Most don't like very hot positions so direct south is best avoided. They are happy in a woodland setting or partially shaded area that receives sun either early or late in the day.

They should flower when they grow more stems. The stem of a flowering cutting has already flowered and so is not as vigorous.

Yes. It works to hold moisture in, especially if it covers the whole pot your cutting is in. The moisture evaporates in the heat of the day. Then, as outside temperatures cool, the moisture condenses and goes down the plastic and back into the soil. This method established a mini ecosystem and reduces the need for watering.

Full sun will burn the hydrangea. Morning sun is best with shade by noon and the rest of the day.

There are some fertilizers that change the pH level. You can add more acidic fertilizer to change the color.

Yes, you can, but you have to make sure that your soil is acidic enough. If it is not, there are supplements you can use to adjust that.

Yes. The best way to do this is to get a small empty plastic water bottle, make your cutting by removing all but the top leaf, and cut those in half. Push the cutting into the water bottle, leaf end first (this makes removing it easier). Pour a tiny amount of water into the bottle (1/8 teaspoon max) and replace the lid. Turn the bottle upright with the cap end at the bottom. The 100% humidity generated inside the bottle will keep your cutting firm and ready for when you return home.

Overwintering indoors is not advisable, since they are outdoor plants, and don't take to being indoors for an extended period. Cuttings are best taken in early summer so that plants are well established before winter, and then given a protected environment close to the house or other heated building, or the pots well covered in mulch for the winter.

Wait one season and see if it survives. If it looks dead, do the scratch test. Scratch a tiny spot of the bark. If it's green, there's still a chance! If brown, you would need to consider propagating a new piece.

The mother plant is just the established plant that you are using to take cuttings from.

Most store bought hydrangeas that are in flower for Mother's Day are shrubs that can live outside for many years in zone 4-8, but depending on your location, the winters may kill the buds in colder areas and you may not get blooms.

Mold usually indicates that there is too much water. You may have over watered your cutting or you did not have it in a warm enough place.

It sounds like it's not receiving enough nutrients in the soil; you might want to add some hydrangea fertilizer.

Dig a hole large enough for the hydrangea. Fill it with lime free compost. Putting some rusty nails in around it will help keep the flowers bluei/purple because it needs acidic soil to keep it blue. There are also colorants in hardware stores that can help.

Aluminum sulfate keeps blue hydrangeas blue and stops mauve ones from turning pink. The more you use, the darker the color. Also, I have had a multicolored result some years too.

Set up a pot indoors for the hydrangea cutting. They are unlikely to thrive in the cold.

Yes. Plant them on the north side of your house with soil that's been amended with peat moss.

About two weeks if it likes the location.

Try removing the bag, and mist water them slightly once a day for 3 days. There might be too much heat and not enough moisture in the bag to generate what the plant needs.

Overwintering indoors is not advisable, since they are outdoor plants, and don't take to being indoors for an extended period. Cuttings are best taken in early summer so that plants are well established before winter, and then given a protected environment close to the house or other heated building, or the pots well covered in mulch for the winter.

Yes. Take it as a hardwood cutting in winter, generally from leaf fall to new growth.

If your white hydrangea is taller, it might be getting too much sun, but is giving shade to the other ones, or it gets the brunt of the snow or ice in winter but it protects the smaller ones from the same elements.

Yes, they will bloom beautifully. Mine are situated like that and they are glorious. You will experience some wilting if it's very hot in the sun, but it does not seem to harm the plants or blooms.

Most hardwood cuttings are taken during the hydrangea's rest time over the winter months--generally the period from leaf fall to when new growth starts in Spring. Take a healthy cutting about nine inches long, and strip the lower leaves, leaving only two or three. Select a sheltered position out of wind and strong sun, and push the cutting into firm soil to hold it in the ground. If the weather is unusually dry, water regularly.

Yes, it is best to prune your plant right after flowers have finished blooming to encourage more blooms the next season.

The mother plant is whatever plant you take it from, so that would be impossible.

Take cuttings and immerse in water immediately, then plant in potting soil. Grew 8 successful plants last year in my greenhouse, they were 2' tall by spring.

Depending on your location, early spring is the best time to plant.

Hydrangeas you buy from the store have roots established in soil, not water. Plants in soil have thick, robust roots. Plants in water have thin hairlike roots. In order to get Hydrangeas to grow hydroponically you need to start them as cuttings in the hydroponic system.