Anytime now, if you’re lucky, you’ll get a peek of spring as some azaleas beat the gun and throw out wallops of colour in your late winter garden.
From searing scarlets, reds, yellows and oranges to softer pinks, lilacs and whites, the flowers eventually smother the bush.
And if it’s a deciduous azalea, the blooms dress up the skeletal bush before the foliage emerges. New varieties mean flowering is not confined to a few weeks in spring – you can even have azaleas that bloom from autumn to winter!
Graham Ross’ favourite azalea
We spoke to Better Homes and Gardens TV presenter Graham Ross about his love of these colourful posies. His favourite azaleas actually fit into one type, the Kurume azalea. This is because they are easy to care for and very low maintenance. His favourites include ‘Kirin’, ‘Christmas Cheer’, ‘Hexe’ and ‘Hinodegiri’.
Types of azaleas
Indica
The main flush of flowers is in spring, but they’ll also spot flowers in autumn and winter. Taller than other hybrids, these evergreens can grow to 3.5 metres and be trained into standards. They also handle more sun and warmer climates than the other hybrids, but generally, filtered sun and shade are best. They don’t tolerate frost. Use as hedges, screens or in mixed borders.
Kurume
These evergreens cope with cooler climates, have smaller flowers and foliage than indicas, and are more compact and dense. But they look mightily impressive when mass planted on gentle slopes, as a border along a path, a low hedge or in containers.
They’re moderately frost-tolerant, but you can mitigate against damaging frosts by placing a water feature nearby or planting against heat-absorbing brick or stone walls. Or, because their roots are shallow, plant them in a rockery. They can grow to about 1 metre and flower in spring and summer.
Mollis
These are deciduous and produce their flowers on bare stems in late spring and early summer. The timing is handy as the flowers struggle in areas where there are frosts. They do well in cool climates and part shade.
A bonus is that summer’s light green foliage turns into brilliant shades of purple and bronze in autumn. Slow-growing, they reach heights of 1.2–1.8 metres. Plant them in drifts with other shade-loving plants such as heucheras or ground-hugging bugleweed (Ajuga spp).
How to grow azaleas
- Climate: Cool, temperate, subtropical, depending on hybrid.
- Aspect: Part sun, part shade. Avoid the afternoon sun.
- Soil: Prefers slightly acidic soil.
- Water: Keep soil moist but not soggy. The growing mix in containers dries out more quickly than garden soil, so monitor soil moisture.
- Food: Apply fertiliser adapted for acid-loving azaleas, rhododendrons and camellias in spring, according to package instructions.
Where to plant azaleas in your garden
Azaleas are surface-rooting plants, so they don’t need very deep soil to thrive – about 30-40cm is adequate. Plant your azaleas in semi-shaded positions, ideally under a tree, as this results in better quality flowers and a longer flowering period. Dew or frost can burn or fade the flowers, so keep that in mind when finding a spot in your front garden or backyard.
Maintaining your azalea plants
You can prune Azaleas to remove unwanted, diseased, or damaged growth and shape them after flowering. In fact, they respond very well to pruning, so they’re perfect for growing as hedges or trimming into standards. If you want tall-growing azaleas to stay compact, prune them back by about one-third after flowering.
How to make my azalea plant last longer?
Graham recommends feeding your azaleas at specific times during their flowering season to prolong blooms. Feed organic pelleted fertiliser after spring, and in November, trim down new growth. Then, make sure to feed again coming into Christmas. Prune once more in January but no later than early February as flower buds are already visible.
He also explains that dry weather can lead to red spider mite infestations, so be cautious and spray the underside of leaves weekly if needed.
How to grow azaleas in pots
When growing azaleas in pots and containers, always use a premium standard potting mix to keep them well watered throughout summer. It’s essential with new plants to tease the roots out gently before planting, to help them establish well in the garden. After positioning in the hole, backfill, mulch and water well with a seaweed solution.
However, don’t plant azaleas in cement pots or near new brickwork as the lime from the pot or mortar can leach into the soil, making it alkaline.
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