Whack it hard next spring, just as the new growth starts. Do NOT whack it in the fall. And enjoy!

Ok, now youÂve piqued my interest and IÂm curious as to why you cut it back in the Spring rather than the Fall. We got one at the either the Fall Swap last year or the Spring Swap this year and it is freakin huge now! ItÂs got to be over eight feet tall and six feet wide. I was going to transplant it this Fall to another area. Should I wait until Spring to do that too?

There are several reasons not to prune plants hard in the fall. First -- the dead stalks/branches/trunks help to insulate the plant by creating still air pockets (and sometimes catching leaves etc.). Second -- open stalk/branch/trunk wounds from pruning encourage rot during the cold/wet winter season. Third -- pruning encourages many plants to start new growth, which means tender new stems just as winter hits.

As for transplanting.....uhhhh.....personally I'd probably wait til spring. As long as you water plenty the plant would *probably* do okay, but IMHO spring would probably be better since you'd be disturbing the roots so much. YMMV!

Thanks for the information.
Interestingly I just read a Southern Living article about a "Annabelle" growing guru who said he practiced "harsh love" by cutting his AnnabelleÂs down in late winter or early spring. With all my plants being together it will be easy to remember and do.
Thanks for your help!

The Annabelle variety of hydrangea blooms on new wood (where as the oakleaf blooms on old). I found that it did better if not cut down at all. You can cut down to keep the size you want, but it really looks better if not pruned much. Her flowers were half the size they should have been when pruned down. As for the BB, those things are considered shrubs down there. They can be treated like that, or they can be cut down. Lots of things will do wonderfully if planted in the fall. There's no reason to wait till spring to plant or transplant. Peonies do the best if divided and transplanted in the fall. You don't want to do it in the heat of Aug, but late Sept, early Oct, will be fine. Same for iris's. Most perennials, shrubs, trees, will do just as good in fall as in spring. As long as they have time to establish some roots till those really cold, snowy winters known in TN come :)

My zone says IL, where I now live, but last year at this time I lived in TN, so I pop in here occasionally....

Terry

I made the mistake last year of prune my BB to the ground AND transplanting AND dividing it in January. Both divisions sarted coming back by late June, and now they're about 3' tall. Certainly not close to the 6-8' I had last year.
I guess I did too much too early. This year, I won't prn at all and see what happens...

The big storm the other evening knocked my 10' BB all the way over! I'm going to have to stake it. I'd like to weave and prune it into a tree form, possibly at the same time. Do you think this is possible or not?

I just don't have much experience with BBs and so I don't know what their limits are. All I know is that we LOVE that the butterflies and occasionally hummers come to the bush (which is right in front of our living room picture window) but we hate how "messy" it makes our front flowerbed look. That's why we'd like to "lift" it a bit.

I realize that in early spring I will have to chop its head off and then keep after the suckers that will try to grow along the "trunk" so it puts its energy into its "hair". But it would be worth it just to be able to keep it a little neater. Considering that I am going to have to stake it, can I do the lower pruning now?

When will it try to get woody on the lower portion? Should I weave it now or later?