It should. Probably just needs some time. It has until frost to do something.

No - it doesn't have any buds that I can see and annabelles have already been blooming in my zone in Toronto for several weeks now. It would have been in bloom in Pittsburg by now. For sure by next year's summer season, it will bloom.

Ianna

That is a small bud in the center of pic 2. Any like that should produce flowers after about another month. (Some bloom times don't correspond with native conditions due to nursery or greenhouse care. E.g. I got Incrediball Blush mail-order recently and it had huge stems which were trimmed down just for shipment. It has since set shoots off those cut stems and will bloom within a month.)

I never expect first year shrubs to bloom unless they are blooming when I buy them, and then I don't expect second year blooms. They need to grow roots and get settled, and if they bloom, it's a pleasant surprise. The old saw of "first year sleep, second year creep, third year leap" isn't a bad guide.

I don't think that's a flower bud. To me it's a leaf bud. In anycase, its not a good thing for newly transplanted plants that usually flower earlier to just begin to develop buds now because its diverting its nutrients from the roots to develop that bud. it takes a lot of energy to produce flowers. So if it does show budding, nip it off.

Thanks ianna. Yes its a leaf bud . It is still leafing without any signs of flowering. I don't think it will produce any flower this season.

I will cut it back to ground next Spring hopping for more flowers next year.

Not to the ground. To about 2 or 2.5 feet.

Like NHBabs, I suggest you leave it be for now and just mulch it to prepare for the winter. In spring after it shows signs of budding, that is when you prune off the dead stems. Why this way, because when the plant goes into hibernation, the branches and leaves form a cushion of protection against winter's worst. This is a technique I follow with many shrubs.

A newly planted Annabelle will bloom later than the ones planted in ground from last season. I had the same issue few years back when I bought my Incrediball (with no buds) from Canadian Tires.