Azalea Hybrid Bushes And
Native American Fiery (flame) Azaleas
Executive Summary about Azalea
sf by Patrick Malcolm
The Southern
indica azalea hybrids are the most popular flowering shrubs for warm climates
that includes the Formosa azaleas of white, pink, red, purple, magenta, violet,
and lavender. Other outstanding Formosa azaleas are Duc DeRohan, Dutchess of
Cypress, G.G. Gerbing, George L. Tabor, Madonna White, and South.
Two
sensational Glenn Dale azalea hybrids are the salmon-pink Fashion azalea. The
Fashion azalea can grow 6 feet tall and is covered with medium sized flowers.
Not all azalea shrubs are evergreen, but American native
azalea shrubs drop the leaves during winter and are called deciduous azaleas.
In the South, these native azaleas are called fragrant bush honeysuckle or the
Florida azalea (Rhododendrun austrinum) with colors of yellow, red, pink,
white, yellow-orange, purple, and bicolor light up the forests or garden
landscape when domesticated.
Azalea
plants are better grown in partial shade, and when planted next to buildings,
the north side offers protection from cold damage. When planting azalea bushes,
the shrub should be put into a landscaped hole that contains half soil and half
organic matter, such as pine tree bark or peat moss. Azalea plants are very
shallow rooted and must be grown in an organic soil mixture.
Leaves and
humus are the best organic fertilizers for azaleas and generally fertilizer is
not recommended, because the plant may be damaged or killed by gardeners who
wish to be "too kind" to their plants. Bright green, shiny azalea leaves generally
means that the azalea plant is in a healthy state of growth.
If azalea
bushes are pruned after flowering, during the summer, there may be only few
azalea flowers formed the following season, therefore the sooner you prune
after flowering, the better your chances are of ensuring beautiful flowering
next year.
Growing Azaleas
Executive Summary about Azalea sf by Erin Taylor
Azaleas are
not hard to grow. As with a lot of other plants there are a few rules that must
be followed to create the right growing conditions, but once established
azaleas are very easy to look after.
The first
thing to do is decide where in your garden you want to grow your azalea plants.
If you are planting into the ground, try to find areas on the South and East
side of your home, where they will be more protected from very hot sun.
Azaleas will
not tolerate alkaline soil and prefer a rich acidic soil with a PH level from
5-6. The roots of azaleas need to be
kept cool and moist, but not wet, which means you'll need to ensure that the soil
drainage in the area you've chosen, is very good. In heavy soil it's a good
idea to dig in plenty of Gypsum or a good clay breaker, although a safer
alternative is to build raised beds and fill them with a good loam that has the
correct PH level.
Although
Azaleas don't have many problems with pests and diseases, they can sometimes be
attacked by fungal diseases such as Petal Blight, which destroys the blooms. The petals look and feel slimy and eventually
the diseased flowers dry up and cling to the plant, most gardeners just pick
off the dead flowers and throw them away, but the problem is easy to control
and cure with the use of a systemic fungicide which can help prevent any
further infection.
The best
time to plant azaleas is when they are in flower, this also gives you the
opportunity to choose the colours you prefer.
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