nothing's wrong...a couple of my FE&E had significant winter dieback this yr...they are all leaving out pretty much like yours...pretty much all the old woods from last yr was dried and dead, so I cut them out already..but the plants are leaving out very nice at the crown - just like yours...no worry...I got my FE&E from a grower friend from one gallon pots, took them a while to get big...now the winter setback, so the plants could still compact for some time to come...so if you start your FE&E from an one-gallon pot size, have patience...

I agree with the above statement also. Along with that your hydrangea should get eastern sun. It will always suffer from evening sun in the heat of the summer.

Thank you both for your responses. The one I have in the back getting Eastern sun is really small. We are planning to get some trees this year so hopefully the sun won't fry it.

Really appreciate the help!