Azaleas need acid soil. Adding plenty of leaf mold, peat moss, or bark can help create the ideal environment. This is particularly important if you're placing the plants near your home's foundation, where lime can leach out of the concrete and neutralize acid soils.
Limestone gravel used for drainage around your home can also cause soil to be too alkaline. In alkaline soils like those in Texas and Arkansas , you may want to try growing a few specimens in containers.
Avoid planting azaleas near downspouts or areas that stay damp. In heavy clay soil, plant them almost on top of the ground, building soil up on the sides of the root ball.
Planting in clay. Dig a hole as deep as the root ball and twice as wide. Add soil enriched with organic matter to the hole so that the top of the root ball will sit 4 inches above ground level. Place the root ball in the hole, and build up the soil on the sides. Planting high gives the shrub the drainage it needs, but you will need to water frequently.
About pruning. Avoid the urge to shear your plants into round balls or other geometric forms. Azaleas look best when allowed to grow to their natural mounded shape. Limit pruning to removing long, stray branches. Older plants that have become leggy may benefit from pruning branches from the main trunk in staggered lengths. A 3-inch layer of organic mulch helps retain soil moisture and keep soil temperatures from fluctuating.
Check the soil around your azalea by hand, and water when it's dry to the touch. Water deeply and thoroughly, so each plant gets water equal to about 1 inch of rain per week in summer. Water slowly, so the water gets absorbed into the root area instead of running off. Avoid overwatering azaleas; soggy soil promotes root disease. When possible, use drip irrigation or water the soil around the plant rather than watering its leaves. Water left on plant leaves often encourages fungal diseases.
Water early in the day, so the sun can dry leaves when they do get wet. Regular all-purpose fertilizers can fall short in providing azaleas with the special nutrients they need.
This special blend of nutrients includes added sulfur to help keep soil pH in the optimal zone as it feeds, plus it provides azaleas with other extras, including calcium, iron and magnesium, to help prevent nutrient deficiencies. Fertilize established azaleas in early spring and again 12 to 16 weeks later, and you'll provide the nutrients they need for the year.
Broadcast the fertilizer over the area under your shrubs and out about 6 inches past the branch tips; then water the entire area well. Shallow roots are sensitive to overfertilizing, so follow label instructions, and don't overdo it. Azaleas are prone to insects and diseases, such as mites, scale, lace bugs, and powdery mildew. Visible signs of damage can be white spots on leaves or thinning branches with white spots. Sevin Sulfur Dust starts killing immediately upon contact and will not harm azaleas.
People and pets may enter the area once dust has settled. Apply a light dusting frequently to keep your azaleas healthy and free from insect and disease damage.
Many azaleas do well with little or no pruning, but they tolerate pruning well, too. As with all flowering trees and shrubs, pruning done at the wrong time of year can inadvertently leave you bloomless the next season.
Spring-blooming azaleas, for example, form their flower buds during the previous summer. You can't see them until later, but they're there. If you prune those stems in fall or winter, you'll sacrifice all your spring blooms. To prevent lost flowers, always prune azaleas immediately after they finish blooming. This helps ensure you prune before new flower buds form.
For reblooming types that flower early on old stems and bloom later on new growth, the first flush of flowers is usually the biggest. Prune these types right after their first bloom period to promote the most flowers for the next year. Prune dead and damaged wood any time. Just remember, pruned branches may mean pruned buds. Dig a hole with a diameter about twice that of the pot the azalea came in, and about the same depth. If the plant is stuck, you can slip a long-bladed knife around the inside edge to loosen it.
Gently loosen some of the roots along the sides and bottom of the root mass, and pull them outward so they are not encircling the root mass.
In that case the offending roots should be shortened so that when they are in the ground they will grow outward and not continue growing in a circle. You may have to pull the plant up as you backfill. Too shallow is better than too deep. When the hole is half filled, give it and the roots a good soaking of water.
When the water has drained, readjust the depth of the stem if necessary and finish filling the hole. Gently tamp the soil down with your hands. Build a inch high dike of soil around the outside of the root zone. This will help impound water over the roots while it sinks into the soil.
Water your azaleas thoroughly. Spread organic matter inches deep over the root zone and beyond to help keep soil moist. You can use hay, straw, leaves, pine needles, pine bark or wood chips, grass clippings or compost. Do not use mushroom compost as this contains lime and can raise the pH. Do not fertilize or use plant food. Azaleas can be planted in containers too as well as raised beds. How to Care for Azaleas Keep your azaleas well watered during their first growing season.
If planted in the fall or winter, you can water once every week or two. Planted during the growing season, they should get watered every day or two for three or four months.
This can also cause yellow leaves. The most common reason for a newly planted azalea to die is lack of enough water. Azaleas have shallow root systems, so they should be well mulched to prevent the soil around those roots from drying out or getting too hot.
Use an organic mulch or peat moss that will decompose and add nutrients to the soil. Try to maintain a mulch layer inches deep around the azaleas at all times, but keep it a couple inches away from the trunk itself.
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