What's eating my hydrangea 'endless summer'?

Hydrangea 'Endless Summer' is an outdoor reblooming shrub. Aphids and vine weevils are the most common pests. Rose chafers and other beetles chew petals in summer. Slugs and snails target young shoots in spring. Deer browse the fresh growth and flower buds heavily, particularly in rural and suburban gardens.

Dense colonies on shoot tips and bud undersides; distorted new growth; honeydew and sooty mould; yellowing leaves Knock off with a strong water jet; apply insecticidal soap or neem oil spray; encourage ladybirds and lacewings; avoid excess nitrogen fertiliser

Larvae eat roots and crown, causing wilting or plant death; adults leave characteristic notched leaf margins Apply Steinernema kraussei nematodes to moist soil in late summer; check root ball when repotting container specimens; use physical barriers around pots

Petals and young leaves skeletonised or chewed; adults visible on flowers in midsummer Hand-pick adults in the morning when sluggish; remove by knocking into a bucket of soapy water; do not use broad-spectrum insecticides that harm pollinators

Flower buds and young shoots cleanly browsed, often overnight; plants look cut back to stubs by morning Erect deer-proof fencing (at least 1.8 m / 6 ft); apply deer repellent sprays regularly; choose planting positions away from deer corridors