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With summer fast approaching, gardens across Britain are currently in their prime, with variations of painting the streets. Hydrangeas are beginning to grow again in May, with beautiful, bountiful clusters popping up throughout the month. However, caring for the flower may vary from other plants, as a gardening expert warns of what not to do this .

Many green-thumbs opt to fertilise or prune to encourage a larger blossom in the future. However, an expert has warned against the commonly made mistakes people make when tending to their garden, which can result in Hydrangeas browning. Heather Stoven from Oregon State University has shared her top tips to avoid your flowers losing their colour and looking burnt. The gardening pro says to avoid two key jobs. The first is to avoid pruning as the "resulting lush new growth will be sensitive to further damage from heat waves in the summer", she told

The expert said to also avoid fertilising, as "excess fertiliser can attract pests to the plant".

Despite a gardener's natural instinct to use fertiliser on plants to stimulate growth, Ms Stoven says to hold back as it's far too early to feed hydrangeas in May.

This is because it may result in weak growth, causing the plant to not survive the heat. As well as this, the product would also attract insects who seek greenery to eat - due to the hydrangeas' softer flowers, they are often a prime target.

By this time of the month, many hydrangeas will have already formed flower buds, ready to blossom in time for summer. However, pruning them at this stage could result in their blooms being cut off, which could subsequently mean no flowers at all.

Ms Stoven also explained how hydrangeas are incredibly thirsty plants as a result of their big leaves quickly losing water.

The gardening pro suggests watering the plant a little bit more than you may think is necessary in May. This will also help to establish strong roots which help to retain water when the summer months arrive.

"If not enough water is available in the soil, or it is lost to the atmosphere faster than it can be replaced, then the plant tissue where the water can't reach will die," Ms Stoven said.

"This is why we see so many brown, crispy leaf edges. It is also possible for high heat itself to cause tissue death."

The gardening pro urges those with hydrangeas to keep the soil hydrated and water them deeply.