Well now. The mophead hydrangeas bloom on new wood and should be pruned in winter, if at all, but Annabelle is not a mophead. Don't prune it at all. Non mophead hydrangeas should be pruned only to remove finished flower heads.

Hydrangeas do need a lot of water. They do not compete well with maple tree roots. They need quite a bit of sun in our area - things that are shade plants in the eastern half of the country often need full sun here.

And, newly planted shrubs often bloom well the first year because they are blooming the buds they set while in the nursery with carefully managed optimal growing conditions. Once in your garden, after those flowers are done, it may not bloom at all in its new growing conditions if you put it in a poorer quality spot than it had before.

I need Annabelle help too. The damn thing grows taller than me, 6'2''/ 187cm from being cut level to the ground and the same if I don't prune it down. And every year it flowers crazy. And when the rain hits the blooms, they bend over to the ground.

Is there a way to have it flower without bending to the ground?

... Don

I read this post with interest because it's a shrub I would love to have. I found this site on the internet with some info on preventing the floppiness factor:

www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/annabelle.html

I have NO personal experience with Annabelles though. Hope others who do will comment.

I have an 'Annabelle' that flowers very well for me. Care instructions for this plant tells me to prune hard in winter, which I usually do in Feb when I can see a tiny bit of which buds look good. I prune to about a foot off the ground simply because I end up with the size of plant I want for the bed (about 4').
I give it water during dry hot periods but it puts up with a fair bit of neglect. It is on the north side of my garage and gets a bit of protection under the eaves, so this helps with the blooms flopping over after the rain. Sometimes after watering, I give them a shake and they bounce back up.

I really love this plant because the flowers last so long and keep a nice white colour fairly late into the year. It's very easy & low maintenance. The pale green foliage & delicate blooms also brighten up the border.

One thing I've learned over the years is that plants sometimes need a period to get happy in their new home. My personal experience is that in about the 3rd year, plants really start to take off. Patience, patience :)

http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/Plant.asp?code=S940