Quick Answer
Feed hydrangeas from spring, as growth begins, through summer. With Hydrangea Fertilizer, mix 2 tablespoons (30 mL) per gallon of water and apply every 1–2 weeks in spring and summer, then every 4 weeks in fall and winter, or use a hose-end sprayer on the 1 oz (30 mL) setting. Avoid heavy late-season feeding, which pushes soft growth before frost.
How to fertilize hydrangeas through the year
Spring, as the first leaves open, is the time to start: the shrub is building the stems, foliage and buds that carry the season. Keep feeding every 1–2 weeks through bloom, then ease off to every 4 weeks as flowers fade in late summer. Hydrangeas that form next year’s buds on old wood are especially sensitive to late pushing, so let the plant harden off before frost rather than feeding into fall.
Water matters as much as feed. Hydrangeas wilt fast when they dry out; use a well-draining soil with some water retention and keep it moderately moist, and the fertilizer can do its work.
| Method | Amount | How often |
|---|---|---|
| Watering can | 2 Tbs (30 mL) per gallon of water | Spring and summer: every 1–2 weeks |
| Watering can | Same dilution | Fall and winter: every 4 weeks |
| Hose-end sprayer | Set the dial to the 1 oz (30 mL) setting | Spring and summer: every 1–2 weeks |
| Leaf misting (optional) | 1 tsp per quart (32 oz) of water | Every 1–2 weeks |
How much fertilizer should you give a hydrangea?
Two tablespoons per gallon, watered over the root zone until the soil is wet. A young shrub takes a gallon; a mature one two or three. Hydrangea Fertilizer is a liquid feed made to support healthy foliage, roots, stems and the growth involved in flowering, and feeding appropriately during active growth does more than trying to force extra flowers with more fertilizer.
Liquid vs. granular hydrangea fertilizer
A granule sits where you spread it and releases over weeks into the soil beneath, so the plant gets a burst, then a long tail, and you cannot adjust either. A liquid goes on across the whole root zone at a strength you set, and the nitrate nitrogen in Hydrangea Fertilizer is available to the roots as soon as it is watered in. That makes a liquid the better choice when you want a visible response this season, and for containers and raised beds that lose nutrients with every watering.
Signs a hydrangea may be underfed
- Pale, yellowing leaves across the whole shrub in spring
- Short new stems and small leaves compared with last year
- Few, small flower heads on a plant in good light that was pruned at the right time
- A container hydrangea that has faded through the summer
Hydrangeas also develop yellow foliage because of soil pH, iron availability, watering, drainage or root problems, so fertilizer is not automatically the answer. Where nutrient availability is the cause, Hydrangea Fertilizer corrects it on new growth.
Signs you may be fertilizing too much
Overfeeding shows as lush, soft, dark growth that flops or attracts aphids, brown scorched leaf edges after a hot spell, or a white crust on container soil. If you see those, skip the next feeding, water deeply to move salts down through the root zone, and resume at the same dilution. Hydrangea Fertilizer is a dilute liquid and dilution is what matters here: keep to the rate, and let the schedule do the work.
Why is my hydrangea all leaves and no flowers?
First check pruning timing, sunlight, winter bud damage and excessive nitrogen. Bigleaf and oakleaf hydrangeas form flower buds on the previous year’s stems, so pruning in fall or spring removes the season’s flowers before they open. A shrub in deep shade grows leaves and little else. And a lawn fertilizer drifting into the bed supplies more nitrogen than the plant can turn into blooms. Adding more fertilizer will not fix any of those.
Can fertilizer change hydrangea flower color?
Not on its own. For certain bigleaf hydrangeas, flower color follows soil pH and aluminum availability: acidic soil with available aluminum gives blue, alkaline gives pink. Not every hydrangea changes color this way, and a regular fertilizer should not be expected to turn flowers blue or pink. Feed for healthy stems and buds, and adjust soil pH separately if you want to shift the color.
