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Home » Backyard Nurseries » The Never-Fail Annabelle Hydrangea

The Never-Fail Annabelle Hydrangea

Updated : August 18, 2015

32 Comments

Annabelle Hydrangea are the hydrangea that never fail to bloom. They bloom on current growth so the flower buds are never affected by frost or freezing temperatures.

 

DSC_0182My plants and my cuttings did just fine last winter even though it got down to -21 below zero, so they are tough as nails. The unrooted hardwood cuttings also experienced those same temps and still rooted and grew like crazy.

Annabelle Hydrangea

They won’t give you too much trouble if grown in average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in part shade. The Annabelle Hydrangea can handle full sun only if kept consistently moist. They aren’t very tolerant to drought conditions so the foliage might not grow as well as you’d like.

Bloom occurs on new wood, so prune the plants close to the ground in late winter to encourage stem growth. Weakened and/or damaged stems should be removed in early spring.

Pruning?

Prune anytime between October (or when the blooming is done) and April. Do not prune during the growing season. The plants starts growing like crazy in April, then come July they start making flower buds on the ends of the new branches and start blooming in late July.

DSC_0183

Here is a video I made at the nursery for you!

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Comments

  1. paula says

    May 21, 2021 at 6:47 pm

    I planted a 3 gallon annabelle last year and have pleased with it’s growth. That is until the deer ate half of it last night. Should I trim the branches with no leaves off? Do you think it will bloom this year? I will make a little barrier around it so the deer can’t get to it. The grasses are dry now so they are in my yard. Ugh! 🙁

    Reply
    • Mike says

      May 22, 2021 at 7:44 am

      Paula,

      Trim it up a bit and it will be fine and will bloom.

      Reply
  2. Linda says

    April 23, 2020 at 12:22 pm

    I am thinking of planting some annabelle hydrangeas by my cottage in Eagle River, WI. The soil is very sandy, so I know I will need to add mulch. Any suggestions on what to add to the mix? Also any suggestions on where to purchase plants?

    Reply
    • Mike says

      April 24, 2020 at 9:39 am

      Linda,

      Just add some compost or composted cow manure when you plant, they should do fine.

      Reply
  3. Andrea McGowan says

    July 19, 2019 at 1:17 pm

    This seems like a great place to ask this question, but I see the thread is a few years old. Hopefully you still check or get notifications! I tried propagating some Annabelle’s last year and 2 survived 🙂 One even produced a flower last year. This year they both came up, but only one is producing flowers (the same on that produced a flower last year). Why do you think this is? They are planted right next to each other.

    Reply
    • Mike says

      July 20, 2019 at 8:53 am

      Andrea,

      Annabelles should flower automatically if you just leave them alone. They put on new growth, stop growing, then make flower buds. I can’t imagine one never flowering.

      Reply
      • Andrea McGowan says

        July 22, 2019 at 8:17 am

        Thanks for the reply, Mike. I will try to be patient!

        Reply
    • Toni says

      May 7, 2020 at 11:31 pm

      Hello! I have four Annabelle hydrangea that I planted in a row three years ago. Two of them bloom and two do not bloom. The two that do not bloom stay a little shorter than the two that do bloom, but all four are very lush,. There’s no disease on the leaves and they get the same amount of sun and water. I can’t figure it out. Thoughts?

      Reply
      • Mike says

        May 8, 2020 at 7:11 am

        Toni,

        I have no idea, Annabelles almost always bloom.

        Reply
  4. Himanshu S Petkar says

    June 7, 2019 at 7:10 am

    Hello,

    My name is Himanshu, from NTD Television, a leading media company and a non-profit organization dedicated to uplifting the world through sharing Truth, Hope and Humanity.

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    Thus, may I have your permission to upload these videos on our websites and social media pages? Of course, we would be very happy to credit your channel to bring you great exposure as over 100 million fans follow our media pages. With your permission, our video team may need to edit the videos, such as reducing it in length or make compilations.

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    Reply
    • Mike says

      June 7, 2019 at 7:24 am

      Himanshu,

      I don’t have a problem with you using some of our videos and editing them for length if you need to. I would appreciate a link back to https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/ if possible. Thanks for asking, -Mike McGroarty

      Reply
  5. Marie says

    May 12, 2019 at 8:22 am

    My Annabel’s are about 7-8 years old. They grew beautifully until the last 2 years. We have many planted around our patio by our fire pit. 2 years ago the leaves looked like they were turning yellow and shriveled up. We raised moved them back and raised up the flower bed . Last year some died the majority bloomed but not like they have in the past, the blooms were much smaller. Obviously they are just starting to grow now. I miss the beauty of the flowers and the big blooms and wondering if they will ever be like they were before.

    Reply
    • Mike says

      May 13, 2019 at 7:45 am

      Marie,

      If you moved them during the growing season that for sure threw them into shock. They should be better this year. We cut ours back really hard and they grow and bloom beautifully.

      Reply
  6. Chichi says

    June 7, 2018 at 10:26 pm

    Hi – when is suppose be the best time to relocate the Annabelle? I just moved my ‘Annabelle last week which planted 4 years ago. I love my Annabelle and it’s has been very brushy and bloomed so much each year. I am worry that it won’t bloom this year as I have to move it.

    Reply
    • Mike says

      June 9, 2018 at 6:57 am

      Chicki,

      Transplanting, which means digging, season runs from Thanksgiving til mid April. Moving plants any other time of the year is very risky.

      Reply
  7. Kay says

    June 10, 2016 at 6:58 pm

    When planting my Annabelle some stems broke off.
    I would like to root these softwood cuttings. Any advice?

    Reply
    • Mike says

      June 11, 2016 at 7:58 am

      Kay,

      Just stick them in some damp soil and place a mason jar over them. Do this in the shade.

      Reply
    • jeanita nelson says

      July 2, 2016 at 10:31 am

      how and when doyou change the colores to blue or pink

      Reply
      • Mike says

        July 2, 2016 at 6:01 pm

        Jeanita,

        Annabelle is white and cannot be changed but the macrophyllas like All Summer Beauty and Nikko Blue can be changed if you apply aluminum sulfate around the base of the plant in the spring.

        Reply
  8. Jonijumpup says

    August 5, 2015 at 8:59 pm

    Zone 5b. I waited a long time, struggled with NIkko Blue, but a couple of years ago I got a couple of Annabelles. They grow and bloom like crazy, but the stems are too tall and weak and the heavy blooms all sag too low and the plants do not look good. If I fertilize and/or water less will the stems be shorter and/or thicker and be a bit perkier?

    Reply
    • Mike says

      August 6, 2015 at 8:21 am

      Joni,

      They don’t need fertilizer. None of the plants in my landscape ever get fertilized. Never. They just don’t need it. Fertilizer will make them grow faster and weaker than nature intended. Just let them do what they do and they’ll be fine. Of course when wet those large blooms will get pulled toward the ground, that’s just what happens, but most of the time they will look great.

      Reply
  9. Jackie says

    August 5, 2015 at 10:58 am

    My Annabelle Hydrangeas used to bloom beautifully. Now the deer eat the buds as soon as they begin. Do you have any remedies for deer?
    Thanks, Jackie

    Reply
    • Mike says

      August 5, 2015 at 7:37 pm

      Jackie,

      Just search this site for deer repellents. They work a lot better in summer than they do winter.

      Reply
  10. Sandra Galloway says

    August 4, 2015 at 11:37 pm

    Love your info. I would like to start a Annibell hydrangea. Where do i find information on how to do this correct? Is there a video?
    Sandra

    Reply
    • Mike says

      August 5, 2015 at 7:49 am

      Sandra,

      My best success with them has been hardwood cuttings. https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2014/02/winter-time-plant-propagation-techniques/

      Reply
  11. deb wood says

    August 4, 2015 at 6:03 pm

    well the impossible has happened…..my annabelle hydrangeas are not blooming….at all. these are pieces of plant moved last fall….from a huge annabelle. each plant is about 3 1/2 feet tall, nice and greeen, in partial shade (they get am sun)……they look just great EXCEPT for the fact they have not bloomed. my other hydrangea varieities have bloomed. is it typical for this hydrangea to not bloom in its’ first year at new location?

    Reply
    • Mike says

      August 4, 2015 at 6:56 pm

      Deb,

      I’d say that your Annabelles are quite happy in their new location and are growing vigorously. I think between now and fall they’ll slow down and bloom. Let me know if I’m wrong about that.

      Reply
  12. Patsy Conlon says

    August 4, 2015 at 5:22 pm

    Love you advise. It has help me a lot in my yard. Thank you so much for your help.
    Patsy Conlon – Dallas Texas

    Reply
  13. Jim Gibson, says

    August 4, 2015 at 1:31 pm

    thank you

    Reply
  14. Penny says

    August 4, 2015 at 12:46 pm

    Love the Annabelle but if it only grows on new wood each year, how does it get any size to become big and bushy?

    Reply
    • Mike says

      August 4, 2015 at 6:59 pm

      Penny,

      The old wood does not die. It just puts on new growth on the old, then blooms on the new growth. They do become nice and bushy.

      Reply
  15. Jerry says

    August 4, 2015 at 12:40 pm

    Thanks Mike ! Love It ! I have been wondering if that was possible, as I cut mine down every Fall..and have only been ‘Splitting’ them for New Plants..but that just makes ‘Holes’ in the next years bush ! Wish the ‘Blues and reds’ would survive my Zone 3B Winters.. Hydrangea still is one of my Favorite Shrubs in my yard !

    Reply

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