They are breaking dormancy early. Hydrangea Vanilla Strawberry (VS) is a mid-season hydrangea paniculata summer bloomer. Paniculatas like it begin to develop flower buds depending on their geographical location, weather, etc. but you could say the invisible buds start in late spring or early summer and blooms start soon afterwards so June-July. Here in Texas, VS leafs out in March and blooms in June (it should leaf out later up north though).

Crape Myrtles are notoriously very late to leaf out here in Dallas, somewhere between April to May in some years. CMs are currently asleep. Roses here tend to stay evergreen in most years albeit with fewer old leaves by this time and with some leaf out in Feb-March. Spireas are quite hardy, almost impossible to winter kill here. Mine are still dormant in Texas.

But sometimes a mild winter with a surprise cold ending is worse than a cold snowy winter. In Atlanta, this happened several decades ago and a large percentage of trees got killed. Periodically check the 10-15 days weather forecasts. Depending on exactly how warm things are, consider mulching, covering with sheets and deeply watering the early risers before any overnight crash in temperatures that might be followed with cold drying winds.

Winter has been unusually warm here too; already hit 90F a week ago. Leafing out over here are roses, irises, salvias, azaleas, forsythias, some hydrangeas and a few trees. Blooming are some azaleas, camellia japonicas, winter honeysuckle, flowering quince and redbuds. If cold temperatures return with a vengeance, you may need to protect some plants and remove some dead wood afterwards. It should not impact Vanilla Strawberry's summer blooms. Good luck, Luis

i learned to never be happy about a mild winter.. and early budding.. it usually results in frost or freeze damage due to early budding... but then.. im in a much colder zone ...

i hope that doesnt happen to you ... or your plants ...its a big year.. and im sure you are very excited ...

ken

You bet I'm very excited; it will be the first spring/summer I'll have post landscaping. Unlike the first summer, I now have my backyard fence, backyard raised beds, backyard lawn torn out and seeded with grass, front yard planting beds all planted, etc. And I am anxiously awaiting to see my plan writ large in living blooming plants! Of the plants already budding, only one of the dozen roses I planted along my picket fence lacks new buds and seems like it might be a goner. The rest all have leafed out to various extents. According to the PlantMap last spring frost charts, looks like Baltimore is April 11-20. So we have a ways to go with potential killing frosts, yikes!

I'm a little west of you in montogmery county. It's been a very mild winter. Maybe the most mild I can remember. Lots of thing are growing early. Most can take a little cold. Hydrangea don't like cold on their leaves, so if yours hasn't leafed out yet, it's a blessing.