Re: Planting Azaleas ???
- To:
- Subject: Re: Planting Azaleas ???
- From: M* T*
- Date: Fri, 3 Sep 1999 22:38:21 -0400
Bob,
Thanks for the kind words!
'Yaku Princess' is a lovely plant - have one myself. She should be hardy
for you - I figure you are USDA zone 5b - min. lows between -10 and -15F,
and she is rated hardy to -15F (-26C). Sounds like the location should be
a good one as the locust should let sufficient sun through for flowering.
My experience with this one is that it needs a bit more sun to set flower
buds than many others - say 'Scintillation', who does quite well with no
direct sun.
That slope will provide good drainage but will mean a good deal of
watering, I think. Building up a lip around the root ball area to retain
moisture helps on a slope; a log or largish rock can be used to hold back
the mix - that way the water just doesn't run downhill quickly. Drooping
or curling leaves that don't turn brown and die are a sign of water
stress....if they turn brown and look like cigars; that's another problem
altogether.
A good mulch will help for winter, but don't get it on the stem! , and if
you're in doubt, rig a screen of burlap on stakes to cut the wind. I find
that rhodies, in particular, need protection from harsh winter
winds...moreso than the evergreen azaleas; probably because of the larger
leaf size. Make sure they are good and moist going into winter...
For some unknown reason, some unidentified critter insisted on digging my
'Yaku Princess' up, when I first planted her. I'd go out and there the
poor dear would be, rootball in the air. After three or four episodes, I
finally got quite annoyed and put some very large rocks over the rootball.
That stopped the critter and the rhodie does not seem to mind at all - I
figure they also give extra protection to the roots and help the soil
remain cool and moist underneath them - rhodies often come from rocky
places. Every few years, I lift the rocks and put some mulch under them
for organic matter.
One thing you might want to double check is whether your native soil is
acid or alkaline - a lot of Midwest soil tends to be on the alkaline side.
If you are finding yellowish leaves on your rhodies and a general lack of
vigor, that could be the reason. Get your soil tested, if in doubt. If it
does turn out to be over 6.0 pH, then using chelated iron when watering
will help, as will as a layer of peatmoss under your pine bark mulch. I
wouldn't use peat as a mulch on its own, as it dries out and the surface
gets hard so that water rolls right off of it, but a layer under a bark
mulch should stay moist and help acidify the soil a bit....if you use it,
make sure it's nice and moist before you lay it down.
Marge Talt, zone 7 Maryland
mtalt@clark.net
Editor: Gardening in Shade
current article:Vines - Part 2
http://suite101.com/welcome.cfm/222
All garden topics welcome page:
http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/3425#top5
----------
> From: Bob Wiltshire <bwiltshi@williamsfoods.com>
> Date: Friday, September 03, 1999 9:38 AM
>
> Marge,
> I love reading your posts--they are full of information. This one in
> particular is fantastic. We planted three rhododendrons (Yaku Princess)
> that I have struggled with all summer to keep halfway watered. I
wondered
> if I had done something wrong in my planting, but did just what you
> described. At least I have confidence that all I need to do is water,
> water, water. They are on a north-facing slope with Northern pines to
the
> west, the house to the south, and a honey locust above. Because of their
> location, I am worried less about winter exposure, but plan to heavily
> mulch them in late fall (again, your post is relevant!) Thank you for
all
> your posts and information.
>
> Grateful,
> Bob
> Linda and Jake
> NE Kansas
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@mallorn.com with the
> message text UNSUBSCRIBE WOODYPLANTS
---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@mallorn.com with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE WOODYPLANTS
