I'm not sure I see the advantage of this :-) Personally, I dislike hydrangeas that produce abnormally outsized flowerheads.........one of the reasons I do not grow the arborescens types like Annabelle. And if you are in climate that experiences a lot of summer rain, the larger the flowerhead, the more the plant will droop and splay after a rainfall event.

I would rather see smaller flowerheads and more of them :-) But to each his own!

most people like oversized blooms. Thats why when you look at marketing photos they always show plants with oversized blooms.

Even if someone is not looking for oversized blooms, a more modest pruning can encourage larger blooms while rejuvenating the plant.

"most people like oversized blooms"

That's a pretty broad generalization that I'm not sure can be supported :-) There are as many, if not more, introductions into the marketplace that focus on dwarf or compact shrubs with correspondingly scaled down flowers as there are those that feature oversized flowers!! As I stated it is a matter of personal preference but there are plenty of gardeners out there looking for plants that are not grossly oversized in any respect.

Hyed, if the blooms' shade of color is just right (dark pink or brown) you might be able to put some orangey or purplish lights and decorate for Halloween! Ha!

In my cold climate, at times I've seen 'Limelight' sustaining severe winter injury and needing to regenerate itself from near the ground. I have to say the ensuing huge blooms do look impressive!

thats very true. Many gardeners mimic severe winter injury by hard pruning early in the season. Bigger flowers come from bigger buds, and bigger buds originate from thicker wood found lower down on the plant.

I have found pruning panicles Hydrangeas at anytime has never effected the growth... I will cut/ prune anytime to shape

Hyed, that's beautiful.

Annabelle in the PNW! lol From my friends garden and the hat is an adult size!

Personally, I have added only serratas to my collection.

This little beauty is only 10 inches tall and covered with blooms.

Planted this spring.