Bypass these rookie mistakes and grow the South’s favorite blooming shrub like a pro.
At Southern Living, we have no shortage of azalea wisdom to draw on.
(Can you imagine how many times they’ve appeared in our magazine since gracing the veryfirst coverin 1966?
Credit: Andrew Redington/Getty Images
The answer is too many to count.)
1.Don’t buy heat-lovers if you live where it snows.
Knowing what to plant is as important as knowing where to plant it.
Choose the right selections for yourplant zoneand your desired bloom time.
Choose well, and they’ll reward you with blooms for years to come.
2.Don’t plant azaleas in deep shade or scorching sun.
While azaleas are relatively easy to care for, they do have preferences.
They might grow in deep shade, but they won’t bloom profusely (or at all).
Aim for that filtered shade (or part sun and part shade) for healthy plants.
3.Don’t scrimp on the dirt.
Azaleas don’t like clay and they don’t like limy, alkaline soil.
4.Don’t overwater your azalea bushes.
Keeping azaleas healthy means being responsible with the watering hose.
5.Don’t mulch in the fall or fertilize before the bloom.
Grumpy encourages mulching and fertilizing in the spring after the blooms disappear.
(He opts for acontrolled-release, acid-forming fertilizer.)
6.Don’t wait too late to prune.
Prune right after the bloom.
once the buds have appeared, well, you’ll be bringing the curtain down prematurely.
7.Don’t plant a polka-dot garden.
Doing this will draw the eye in and create impact and drama.
