THE COASTAL GARDENER:

Fairly often at this time of year, I hear from gardeners who are suffering with an otherwise healthy hydrangea that barely blooms.

The explanation usually goes something like, “The plant seems healthy, the leaves are big and green, but I hardly get any flowers at all. I see other hydrangeas that are almost completely ignored, and they’re in full bloom.” If the account continued, the plea would head in either of two directions: what fertilizer I might recommend, or whether they have the wrong variety of hydrangea.

I’ve heard this report before, a few hundred times.

But, being the expert I am professed to be, and having heard the words “hydrangea” and “no flowers” strung together in the same sentence, I usually cut the frustrated gardener off in mid-narrative.

I tend to finish people’s thoughts for them most of the time anyway, if not verbally, then mentally at least — a terrible habit of mine. I need to listen more and talk less; I’m working on that. But during the familiar “my hydrangea won’t bloom” saga, I feel completely justified to immediately jump to my conclusion. I know where this dialogue is headed. I’ll practice my listening skills some other time — perhaps during a future “rabbits are eating all the plants in my garden” rant.

I dive in with laser-like accuracy as I redirect the conversation away from which fertilizer or which hydrangea they should be using.

“When was the plant last pruned?” I ask. “I haven’t pruned it for months,” is the usual response. I expected that answer. Diving deeper into the pruning query, I follow up with, “How about any pruning during this past winter?”

A pause. A moment of silence. The eyes roll upward, and I lose eye contact as the gardener gazes momentarily into the distance. Neurons, electrodes and receptors interact for a brief couple of seconds of reflection and deliberation. At this precise moment, we’re almost there, nearly arrived at the exact instant of hydrangea enlightenment. But not quite; just a little more clarity is necessary.

That’s when I offer, “Remember, hydrangeas look pretty rangy in the midst of winter, often losing a lot of their leaves and looking pretty shabby. It’s pretty tempting to cut the plant back then or at least shape it. How about the gardener?”

That’s it. The eyes focus again, the brain waves slow and an answer is imminent, “Yes, it probably is trimmed back during the winter, just to make it look a little better.”

A-ha! My assumption was right, and I feel once again justified in cutting off the frustrated gardener in mid-sentence a few moments earlier. (I still know I need to work on that bad habit.)

Now that I’ve established the crime scene, I’m ready to offer counsel. “The pruning your hydrangea got last winter is what is preventing it from blooming this summer. Unlike most plants, almost all hydrangeas set flower buds on their stems the prior fall. When you prune a hydrangea any time after about Labor Day, you may not know it, but you are actually removing the following year’s flowers.”

I continue, “Here’s what you should do. As soon as hydrangea flowers fade, prune them off individually. Only cut the stems that flowered. Cut way down the stem if you want to keep your plant a bit smaller. Or, if you want your hydrangea to grow larger, cut it higher up on the stem. But most important, do this pruning during the late summer, before Labor Day, if you can. The reason you don’t have very many flowers is your plant is being pruned too late in the year.”

The hydrangea gardener is grateful for the advice, smiles and heads back to the garden, looking forward to lots of flowers next year. The next gardener approaches and begins a long, extended story about how rabbits are invading her garden and eating everything in sight. I keep eye contact, smile and nod compassionately.

I know I should practice my listening skills and not interrupt. I really have to work on this!

ASK RON

Question: Someone told me about a fruit-tree meeting next week at the Orange County Fairgrounds.

Answer: The Orange County Chapter of the California Rare Fruit Growers holds its monthly meeting this Thursday, Aug. 21 at 7:30 p.m. in the Silo Building at the Orange County Fairgrounds. This month’s meeting features Tom del Hotal speaking on pruning techniques for deciduous fruit trees like apples, apricots, nectarines, peaches, plums, pluots and others.

ASK RON your toughest gardening questions, and the expert nursery staff at Roger’s Gardens will come up with an answer. Please include your name, phone number and city, and limit queries to 30 words or fewer. E-mail [email protected], or write to Plant Talk at Roger’s Gardens, 2301 San Joaquin Hills Road, Corona del Mar, CA 92625.

RON VANDERHOFF is the nursery manager at Roger’s Gardens in Corona del Mar.