Is it possible to keep climbing hydrangea less massive?

CT, Zone 5, United States

Several of the front walls of my brick house have large climbing hydragea growing on them. They are very healthy and quite nice (and, fwiw, don't seem to be hurting the brick).

I like the blooms fine, but I wonder if it is possible to train/prune them to keep them closer in to the wall. Right now they mass out about 2.5 feet away from the wall.

I asked a horticulturist who was doing some other work around the house for his opinion, and he went right and ahead and cut some of them back without asking! You can see in the photo the one he cut is rather bare in the middle, exposing the brick. The others are so deep from the wall that they are really making the peonies and floxgloves suffer. All of this was here when I moved in, I'm just trying to get ahold of it all!

Opinions, anyone?

13 Sep, 2009

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Answers

Seaburngirl

pruning it back will help and the new growth will cover the gaps. pity he didnt ask permission first.

13 Sep, 2009

Bamboo

It is usual to prune these quite frequently just to keep them flat against the wall they're growing on. The first time you do it, because it's not been done regularly, you may well end up with bare patches like this, but the plant should recover and put out new shoots to fill those gaps, as Seaburngirl says.

13 Sep, 2009

Noeticblues

Thanks so much! I feel much better -- and empowered to reduce the rest.

14 Sep, 2009

How do I say thanks?

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