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Hydrangea
Laraine2
Posts: 12
My newly planted Vanilla Fraise produced a flower on each stem, but the stems are spindly and lying flat to the ground. What can I do as regards pruning and or feeding to improve and strengthen it for next season. I'm a complete novice. Thanks for your help.
0
Posts
These plants flower on new wood so leave it for now but next spring, around the end of Feb or mid March you can prune each stem back to a bout 9 inches and give the plant a generous feed of blood, fish and bone or pelleted chicken manure and then occasional liquid feeds of tomato food to encourage flowers.
If you do this every spring the plant should bulk up and grow more and stronger stems as it matures.
Thanks. That's really helpful.
Wow. Thanks for that. I have a lot to learn. I've planted it in my front garden which is north east facing and only gets early sun. Should I move it, if so when?
Since it flowered well for its size, I think I'll leave it where it is for another season and see how it develops. Meanwhile I will be diligent with the pruning and feeding according to your advice. It could be stunning by my front door. Many thanks.
I too have a vanille f. hydrangea, and found the same as you.
There's an article on the RHS website where they trialed hydrangeas. They reported vanille f along the lines of lovely, but didn't get a AGM as the stems were unable to support the flower heads when wet without support.
I'm sure pruning will help a bit, but it's a characteristic of the plant I'm afraid.
Mine's been in 2 yrs now, I may move it so it gets some shelter from a tree
Sill very beautiful though!
Billericay - Essex
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
Mine is in its 3rd full year and I have done the pruning as advised by the nurseryman who sold it to me and this year it has produced more numerous and more sturdy stems and the flowers have been held high rather than drooping. It is in full sun on moisture retentive but well drained soil and has had to cope with a drought this year.
mine is still the polytunnel, unplanted