Safe to replant hydrangea?

7 years ago

I had two pee gee limelight hydrangeas planted last week. They are a decent size already, cost $60 each. They are listed to get 6-8' tall and wide, so I set flags 3 feet from my patio for planting. Unfortunately the person who planted them put them only about 1.5' out from the patio.

Is it safe to replant these so soon or should I just let them be and prune them aggressively on the backside each year?

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Rockridge Rose

7 years ago

replant. I do it all the time. they do fine

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Comments (6)

guyground
7 years ago
If they perform anywhere near how the are supposed to they will vastly outgrow that space.

Thus, replant. I would do it ASAP. The cooler temperatures of early spring is an excellent time for planting or replanting.

By the way a smaller hydrangea such as Bobo, would work in that space.
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luis_pr
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Feel free to replant further away. You do not want to add a task to your Spring To Do List if you can prevent by replanting. Since it blooms on new wood and it is still dormant looking, replanting now should not stress it as much as doing it in the summer would (for example) would do. One question though, if you are in the patio standing and look and find a 6-8' shrub blocking the view, will that be ok? Or would your prefer a shorter in height specimen so you can see what is going on in the rest of the patio? ... when the shrub is fully leafed out?
hyed
7 years ago

This will give idea how big Limelight can get (10’x10’) . I also agree a Bobo
Alexander SE Michigan - Zone 5b
Original Author
7 years ago
Hyed, I like that growth. Sure it's in the way a bit, but I like the natural look of big beautiful plants rather than tightly manicured and neat.
NHBabs z4b-5a NH
7 years ago
Peter, I think what they are saying is that you can choose the size of the plant to fit your wishes for the space. So do you want an 8’ plant in that spot which would mean planting 4+’ out, or would you prefer a 5’ plant which would require planting 3’ out or would you prefer a 4’ plant that you would plant 2+’ out? If you choose the plant for the correct size for your location, it won’t look manicured but it also won’t be looking squashed into a tight space and overhanging something like a walkway or seating area so that folks feel like they have to duck around them as in the photo above. And in my experience, you can’t effectively prune these for smaller size since a mature plant regrows pretty much all that was cut off within weeks, and if you prune later in the season, you remove blooms. So if you want a tall plant like Pee Gee in this spot, move them out to 4’ because IME these shrubs don’t typically stay at the small end of the size estimate which is often the 5 or 10 year size - they continue growing beyond 5 years but add size at a much slower rate. Moving them immediately after initial planting (which is what you are considering doing), they won’t notice since roots won’t have gotten settled and started growing into new soil yet.