This is a public-interest archive. Personal data is pseudonymized and retained under GDPR Article 89.

Re: [SG] Azaleas & Rhododendrons

Pottsey,

This is true, however, if you've got heavy clay soil or a known drainage
problem, you don't even want to dig a hole, but plant the rootball on top
of the existing grade and mound your nice acidic mix up over the ball  and
out far enough so that there isn't a noticeable "mound" that water will
drain right off of or wash the mix off the rootball.  Personally, I use
well rotted woodchips and peat - because the chips tend to be neutral as
they rot, not acid -  or pine bark fines (which are and stay acid) and a
bit of compost and not a lot of my naturally clay soil in my mixes.

Marge Talt, zone 7 Maryland
mtalt@clark.net
Editor:  Gardening in Shade
current article:  Planting Under Trees - Part 10;The West Side
http://www.suite101.com/frontpage/frontpage.cfm?topicID=222
Gardening Topic Index for Suite101:
http://www.suite101.com/userfiles/79/gardening.html

----------
> From: venies.place <venies.place@MCI2000.COM>
> Date: Tuesday, September 01, 1998 5:52 PM
>
> I got this info from "Gardening by the Yard" with Paul James:
>
> Azaleas aren't difficult to grow but they are picky about where and how
to
> be planted. They do best in high shade, so unless your property is
heavily
> shaded, plant them on the east or north side of the house. They need
fairly
> constant moisture but good drainage, so amend the planting hole with lots
of
> peat moss--a 50/50 mix of peat moss and soil is ideal--or buy a special
> planting mix developed just for azaleas.
> Two more quick tips: Mulch your azaleas heavily with pine needles,
crushed
> pecan shells, cottonseed hulls, or shredded oak leaves, and fertilize
only
> after they bloom in spring, ideally with a slow-release fertilizer such
as
> cottonseed meal.
>
> Pottsey
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index