Limelight Hydrangeas – Droopy Flowers

Q: We continue to have the same problem with our Limelight hydrangeas. During bloom, we always get the flowers hanging down to the ground. Anything we can do to prevent this? 

A: Even a good thing can be improved. The Limelight hydrangea was patented in 2002 and was a sensation in the garden world. The big flowers are a pretty pale green in midsummer, fading to shades of pink and purple by fall. There’s nothing like it in the landscape. But one of the weaknesses of Limelight is that it flops: Stems are sometimes too thin to hold the flowers up high, as you have found. Careful winter pruning can fix the problem, but it’s a pain to do it every year. So Limelight Prime was introduced in 2021. Not only do the green flowers fade to prettier colors, but the stems are thicker, leading to a plant whose flowers don’t flop. So you have two choices: replace your Limelights with Limelight Prime, or learn how to prune them correctly. I have notes on how to do so at bit.ly/GAlimeprune.