I have several hydrangeas that I purchased at Trader Joes. My gardener cut back all the leaves and stems. I am kind of annoyed because I don't think that was the correct thing to do. Now they look dead. They had finished blooming. I need someones advice as to whether this is the correct thing to do.  I take diligent care of them and I think they would have come back if he didn't cut them all off! Also, should he cut down my hydrangea bushes that are planted in my yard. The hydrangeas from Trader Joes were still in their plastic pots and I was planning on combining them into a clay pot for later. Please help!

Thank you Jamie for your reply. They are mophead hydrangeas and came with the colored foil around the pot as if it was going to  be a house gift, etc. They look dead to me but how do I confirm that???? The large ones I have in my back yard are different varieties... ie.. lace, etc I  appreciate your advice!

To tell if a leafleass hydrangea is still alive, you can look at the bare branches and then touch them. An alive branch will bend slightly with pressure (revealing that the stems still have moisture in their cell tissues), and if you scrape a tiny spot with your fingernail, you'll encounter moist light green or whitish underskin. Dead branches will be brittle or brown if scratched. You may find that removal of dead hydrangea stems is easiest in late winter, when the prolonged cold thoroughly has made all the dead stems very shriveled, brittle, or even a slightly pale gray-brown in color.

Potentially those mophead hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla) of yours could have a year of lots of growth and few, if any, flowers next season. Mopheads really don't need pruning ever, unless you remove a dead stem, or are rejuvenating a really old, unkempt shrub. Mopheads flower from their OLD WOOD, that is, they bloom from buds made on their stems from summer into fall. So, in a quick-reference nutshell: lightly trim mophead, lacecap and oakleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea quercifolia) in late spring/early summer before their flowering. (Trim stems back by no more than 1/3, don't hack them back severely).

For Hydrangea paniculata (like 'PeeGee') and Hydrangea arborescens (like 'Annabelle'), you can prune them anytime after their flowering until late winter, since they flower from NEW WOOD (the new stems that are regrown each spring into summertime).

Well, yes and no...unless you want hydrangeas to always be at roughly the same height each year, you should do some light maintenance pruning...the latter two species I mentioned that flower on NEW GROWTH, it would be beneficial to cut them back so you have lush new growth each year. As for mopheads and lacecaps, only light pruning as needed if at all.

Where do you live? The hydrangeas that your gardener hacked back likely will not sprout back, if still alive, until the spring. This time of year the frosts and shorter days will naturally force those hydrangeas into their winter dormancy. Unless you live in a subtropical area like coastal southern California or southern Florida, new growth won't happen now.

Or, are the hydranges that have been cut back indoor houseplants? They should very well sprout back if given moist soil, warm temps and sunlight in a southern window; perhaps taking 3-5 weeks (although hydrangeas must still have a chilly winter dormancy for their prolonged health).

The hydrangeas in pots can be considered "temporary" houseplants. Usually the florist industry will force various plants into bloom for certain seasons and then for sale as seasonal houseplants. You may be familiar with the frilly-flowered mums that seem to always be available year round, or Easter lilies, calla lilies, and of course mop-head and lace-cap hydrangeas (especially popular to be brought into flower for Easter and Mothers' Day in the US). Florist greenhouses go to great extent to get plants to bloom outside of their natural flowering time, to coincide with our needs.

The potted hydrangeas would eventually die if you kept them in the house, as hydrangeas need a cool-season dormancy. So, I'd recommend keeping the cut-back potted hydrangeas outside in a bright, indirect-light (partial shade) spot where they will be exposed to chilly temperatures this fall and early winter. Don't put them in full sun, as you don't want the roots in those small pots to dry out too fast, either. Tuck them on the outside of the garage or tree on the north side, water them as needed to keep soil only moist (not soggy). Then, when the sun's strength starts to increase and days get longer in Jan or Feburary, you could choose to bring those pots indoors and then fertilize them and encourage new growth.

Does this make sense?

A drama-free alternative would be to simply plant these potted hydrangeas in the ground in the backyard and hope they survive and see what makes it next spring, and then consequently blooms for you in the distant future. We don't know the variety they are, so you don't know how tall they'll get and thus you may end up with a tall plant in the front and a shorter-growing variety too far back in the garden bed.

EIther way, expect some plants to croak, since you're not going to expend a lot of effort/energy. Now if you knew someone at a florist production greenhouse who could do all this babying for you pro bono... ;P