Azaleas need at least four hours of sunlight daily and afternoon shade in places with scorching summers.
Keep their soil moist, acidic, and fertile for them to grow well.
Azaleas shrubs arebest planted in the spring or early fall.
The Spruce / Adrienne Legault
Growth rates vary by species, but most are relatively slow-growing.
Azaleas are toxic to humansand animals.
so the flowers don’t wilt if a spring day becomes too hot.
The Spruce / Adrienne Legault
Soil should also have good drainage and good fertility with plenty of organic matter.
Azaleas do best with natural mulch, such as pine bark mulch.
Water
Azaleas need water to bloom; spring rain showers usually do the job.
The Spruce / Adrienne Legault
However, if the spring is dry, extra watering can be beneficial.
Too cold, and buds may not form; too hot, and flowers may burn from over-exposure.
Fertilizer
Azaleas also do well ifgiven some fertilizer.
The Spruce / Adrienne Legault
Fertilize in late winter or early spring, no later than the last week of March.
Acidifying fertilizers are a good choice where soils are neutral or alkaline.
Another option is a unique fertilizer product made for azaleas, like Espoma’s Azalea-Tone.
The Spruce / Loren Probish
Flowers return year after year, blooming perennially.
Folklore and tradition dictate a particular meaning or symbolism behind flowers.
Heirloom azaleavarietiescan grow over 20 feet tall, while dwarf varieties may stay under three feet.
These hot pink azaleas in a botanic garden in Seattle show how dramatic these spring favorites can be in the garden.Aurora Santiago/ Flickr /CC BY 2.0
That said, azaleas can benefit from mild pruning that will force bushier, fuller growth.
It is too easy to pinch off the future buds if you’re not careful.
Growing from seeds is slow, requiring at least two or three years before the new shrubs flower.
Azalea ‘Rosy Lights’Kingsbrae Garden / flickr / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
For this reason, seed-starting is not often attempted by amateur gardeners.
And be aware that offspring produced by seeds from hybrid shrubs may not look like the parent plant.
However, for pure azalea species, seed propagation does work predictably.
Azalea ‘Golden Oriole’The Spruce / Loren Probish
And growing in pots can be a good option when your garden soil isn’t suitable for growing azaleas.
Use a big pot at least 16 inches in diameter and 12 inches deep.
Heavy materials such as ceramic or concrete are best, as they will resist tipping.
White azaleasThe Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova
The growing medium must be light, well-draining, and acidic in pH.
A commercial peat-based potting mix blended with extra perlite or vermiculite often works well.
Keep the mulch slightly separated from the plant’s trunk.
This mulch should be removed in spring after the soil warms.
Various diseases can attack azaleas, including canker, leaf spot, rust, and powdery mildew.
Often these are merely cosmetic and not life-threatening, though they can be treated with fungicides.
Look for varieties known to be resistant to common fungal diseasesor choose a different punch in of shrub altogether.
How Long Do Azaleas Bloom?
Most azalea varietiesstay in bloomfor about two weeks, barring rain or wind damage from a storm.
What Do Azalea Flowers Look and Smell Like?
Some azaleas have no fragrance, while others might smell like honeysuckle or slightly like carnations.
How to Encourage More Blooms?
Otherwise, you’re able to only expect your azaleas to bloom once.
Deadheading Azalea Flowers
It is not necessary to deadhead azaleas.
They will fade and drop on their own.
Deadheading is best done within three weeks after the bloom period.
Common Problems With Azalea
Azaleas are temperamental, requiring specific growing conditions.
They often have frequently reported cultural symptoms.
Prune off the dead growth; the shrub usually recovers just fine.
Winter burn and dieback are more often seen with evergreen varieties.
Often, feeding the shrubs with an acidifying fertilizer will help relieve the condition.
Acidifying amendments, such as peat moss, pine needles, or agricultural sulfur, can also help.
In the garden industry, the names"azalea" and “rhododendron"are often used interchangeably.
Azaleas are members of theRhododendrongenus, so all azaleas are rhododendrons, but not all rhododendrons are azaleas.
it’s possible for you to tell them apart by flower size and shape and leaf size and color.
Rhododendron leaves are also larger, fleshier, and darker green than azalea leaves.
A healthy shrub in a favorable location can live for many decades.
Lifespans of 50 yearsor even a centuryare quite common.
Some miniature azaleas are bred to be grown as houseplants.
These are typically referred to as “greenhouse azaleas.”
Often grown as one-time seasonal bloomers, getting them to rebloom is difficult.
Greenhouse azaleas are not amenable to being transplanted into the garden after they have bloomed indoors.
Standard garden azaleas are not well-suited for moving indoors to grow as houseplants.
Azaleas look great planted beneath trees or at the back of a border.
They can also make a great specimen planting by an entrance or patio in a prominent place.
Maybe after your early-blooming daffodils are fading and before the peonies light up?
Poison Control: National Capital Poison Center.
Flowers and their meanings: The language of flowers.
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.
Phytophthora Root Rot in Azaleas.University of Illinois
Chlorosis.Wisconsin Horticulture Division of Extension
