Good question. Wondering that myself. We have another couple of dry freezing nights coming. Some of the hydrangeas look like a blackened mess of sticks

If the soil is dry, water them.

If this weather pattern continues to hold, I think watering will become essential since there was no snow cover to melt, sink down and moisten the earth. We've also had the same strong, drying winds here every day, day after day. Whenever I check the 5-day forecast, it shows sun & clouds. This time last year I was pumping water out of my cellar.

miclino - my hydrangeas look the same as yours. That hard freeze week before last zapped them even though I tried to cover them as best I could with the wind blowing a gale.

The majority of my new perennials were grown from seed via winter sowing so their roots are deep & healthy but even so, they still need moisture to thrive. I've got just under 200 winter sown milk jugs sitting on my breezeway that are beginning to dry out. I use shallow plastic storage bins for bottom watering. Methinks I need to buy several more. The first two years I winter sowed, we had heavy spring rains and I actually carried a couple hundred jugs inside my garage so they could dry out!

your soil should be damp .. either it is.. or you make it so ...

but with cold nights.. once the soil is damp .. you do not need to water them every day.. like you might in august ... dont drown them ...

make sense???

bottom line.. INSERT FINGER AND FIND OUT.. no guessing ...

ken