Potential Hydrangea Fungus

9 years ago

Hello, everyone! My husband and I are novices when it comes to gardening...we don't quite have green thumbs, yet. We could use some help in identifying what's going on with our Penny Mac hydrangeas.

Pictures here: http://imgur.com/a/zoVZx

We purchased two Penny Mac hydrangea plants at a reputable nursery here in New England and transferred them to a partially sunny spot in front of our house. Here are some potentially pertinent details:

-- Our home was built a year ago, so there was a lot of sand where we planted them. We filled the area of plenty of soil and mulched on top.

-- At first, we found that the water was draining quickly because of the sand below. We added more soil and quickly saw the plants blossom back to life after watering.

-- In recent weeks, both hydrangea bushes have begun to brown, both on the leaves and blossoms. We are getting beautiful blue blossoms, but they turn brown within a week or two, hence us thinking that perhaps there is a fungus at work.

Any help in identifying what may be the cause of our hydrangea issues would be gratefully appreciated! Thank you in advance!

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Comments (3)

guyground
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Hello that's not a fungus. The picture you posted is classic for heat stress which happens because the plant is not getting enough water to met its needs. First you'll notice browning and curling at the edges of the leaf, then it moves more inward. Younger plants are particularly susceptible to heat stress in the summer as they have yet to form a strong and deep root system to find the water

in your post you also provided a clue when you said you watered and you saw them come back to life, another indication of heat stess.

Quick browning of the flowers go hand in hand with heat stress and happens frequently with younger plants. They just are not able to get enough water to the flower so it goes brown.

That being said overwatering of hydrangeas is not good either

thus water to try to keep even moisture , the good news with fall approaching the cooler temps and increased rain will provide some relief and the need to provide supplemental water will significantly diminish and then be altogether eliminated.
guyground
9 years ago
Another rule of thumb is I don't expect much from my hydrangeas for the first couple of seasons. It takes time for them to establish and show their true potential. Also, you mentioned you live in New England. Do know if you are zone 4-5? You may need to think about winter protection.
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luis_pr
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Hydrangeas in sandy soils need amended soils and about 50% more water than in other soils. Otherwise, leaves wilt, brown out and blooms are spent prematurely. You may want to water the soil and then see how long the moisture lasts by checking on other days. If dry, you need to water again (or water more) or add more organic compost, etc. After a watering, you want to aim for moisture reaching around 8" down or so. A soil moisture meter might also help. Note: there is such a thing a gray mold that browns the blooms and gives the sepans a wet look but since you did not mention that, I assume they are just drying out early. In future years, as the roots can absorb more water and faster, the bloom problem will be reduced. Some people give new hydrangeas some temp shade in the summer on their first year(s); you can cover them with an outside chair or umbrella.