Hydrangea macrophylla Runaway Bride Shrub Plants

For Hydrangea macrophylla it is enough to remove the dead flower heads straight after flowering and cut out any diseased or dead stems. Plants can occasionally be shaped and thinned out a little by pruning about a quarter of the oldest stems and weakest stems back to a couple of leaf joints. This will help to encourage healthy new growth and provide space for other stronger stems to thrive.
Hard pruning in spring is not appropriate for Hydrangea macrophylla, as growth of its flower buds begins the previous summer and autumn, at the end of mature stems and a spring pruning would remove them. Any pruning should therefore be done with a light touch and preferable straight after flowering.
In most parts of the UK, hydrangeas are perfectly hardy but care must still be taken that the autumn-formed flower buds of H. macrophylla are not damaged by severe frost and winds in winter. It is best to plant any hydrangeas in a sheltered position, protected by surrounding trees or shrubs from the worst of the weather. If that is not possible, they can be protected by covering with a fleece, although this does come with the risk of knocking off some of newly formed flower buds.