Originally this was one huge bush that inadvertantly got split into four smaller bushes when my friend JoAnn decided to dig it up to make way for some new landscaping in her yard. I decided to go ahead and prune them rather severely because I figured what was left of the root ball(s) would have a hard time supporting the plants if left as is. I knew that I'd be removing most of the pre-formed flower buds but figured it would be worth it for the eventual health of the plants.
I got exactly three blooms on two of the four bushes. I guess that's a lot better than nothing. And instead of the regular solid hydrangea blue, they were sort of a variegated lavender. Maybe the cement piers under the porch are making the soil more alkaline? Anyway it will be interesting to see how many blooms I get next summer and what color they'll be. So here is this year's batch of blooms:
Hydrangea Bloom #1
Hydrangea Bloom #2
And on the other bush, Hydrangea Bloom #3
