Hello, joraines. Hydrangeas here are suffering from the heat and these are established plants. A newly planted hydrangea, suffering from transplant shock and having a small root system, will have wilting episodes when it looses moisture through the leaves faster than it can absorb moisture through the roots. As long as the soil remains moist, the shrub will recover once the sun goes down. Check it in the morning. If it remains wilted, add 1/2 gallon of water near the root ball.

In order not to overwater and end up causing root rot, use the finger method if unsure what to do. Insert a finger to a depth of 4" and water if the soil feels dry or almost dry. Extreme looking wilting episodes should be dealt by immediately watering the root ball but otherwise, wait until the next morning to water. When doing regular waterings, apply about 1 gallon of water to the soil (not the leaves) in the early morning hours from the root ball outwards to encourage roots to look for water, grow and extend outwards. As the hydrangea becomes established in your garden (1-2 years), these wilting episodes will be reduced greatly but can occur during the worst of the summer temperatures.

Wilting is a common problem when hydrangeas are planted in areas that are too windy. The winds cause the leaves to loose moisture quickly so some poeple transplant them to other locations. They also water them the day before a Wind Advisory is issued.

In some cases where the part above ground is too large for the recently cut roots to moisten during summer, some people prune the top inches of the stems to reduce the area that needs water; that pruning usually includes deadheading of blooms. I have not tried this myself so I cannot comment. My Incrediball is protected from wind on three sides so this has not been a problem (yet) but I expect it to be since our temperatores have been skirting 100 degrees.

Does that help you, joraines?

Yes, thank you. I may post a pic of it if I can figure out how here. Some of the braches have died and others are turning brown. It had a great root system in the pot when we bought it in April and planted it immediately. I think I am either 'killing it with kindness' by over-watering or it isn't getting the sunlight it needs but I can't figure out which it may be or if it is either!

With hydrangea's, I go with the 'more water the better' method but since it's in a pretty shady spot, I may need to back off a bit. Our weather here in the SC Upstate has also been in the sustained mid-90's lately with no rain until two nights ago when we got a 'gully washer' and then more rain the following night--but, of course, we had watered everything profusely right before that with the sprinklers.

The other hydrangea's I have of the Nikko Blue variety are looking fine. The two in mostly full sun do wilt down a bit and look droopy during the heat of the day but perk back up in the evening and morning. This one, the Invincibelle, may not truly be invincible for me! Thanks again for the tips.

Still learning this forum and can't get e-mail updates to my posts but in case anyone wanders back to this thread, I moved the Incredibelle up to an upper bed from my lower, shady creek bed and planted it where it gets more sun and though the current growth did die back, it is putting out new growth so I am gathering that it is happier in more sun. ????