Gotta Love An Azalea!

by Lisa Greene
(Durham, NC, USA)

Although I love many flowering shrubs, I'd have to say the azalea is my personal favorite. I grew up outside Aiken, South Carolina, on the South Carolina-Georgia border. Every spring, television coverage of the Masters Golf Tournament in nearby Augusta would highlight the azaleas so beautifully in bloom.

Driving through Aiken, the azaleas would lift even downcast spirits on a spring morning. Today I live in North Carolina and love the azaleas in my NC yard just as much as my SC azaleas. Azaleas generally do not need full sun, but many varieties do well in full sun. They are fairly forgiving shrubs.

In my experience in North and South Carolina, azaleas appreciate high shade and slightly acid soil. They do well planted under tree canopy and appreciate natural (pine straw, pine bark, or shredded wood) mulch. They don't require heavy fertilization.

Compost is the azalea's friend, acting as natural mulch and delivering a slow release of nutrients. I also like the natural shape of the azalea much better than formally pruned box hedges, so I do not spend much time pruning them. I appreciate a low maintenance shrub!

If you do need to prune an azalea, the best time to do that is right after it finishes blooming. The shrub will put out new growth and that new growth will bloom next year. Don't wait too long to prune an azalea. It will not have time to put on new growth before the winter cold and will not bloom well the next year.