How to care for and manage Japanese azaleas
Here is a sharing about how to care for and manage Japanese azaleas and the techniques for planting them, the introduction of green plants and flowers is as follows:
If you find it difficult to care for azaleas, it might be because you haven't chosen the right variety. If you want to make it easier to care for, it's best to choose Rhododendron simsii or Belgian azaleas (also known as Western azaleas, Xiqueen). These are common azalea varieties with very low maintenance difficulty, suitable for beginners.
For example, buying Belgian azaleas with flower buds in autumn, they can bloom continuously from winter to spring. The flowers keep blooming. In the extreme heat of summer, Belgian azaleas will enter a semi-dormant state and bloom again in autumn, basically blooming all year round, about 8-9 months of the year.
Belgian azaleas have a relatively high cost-performance, usually a large pot can be bought for 20-30 yuan, of course, this refers to the price without the pot. If you buy those potted Belgian azaleas that have already been repotted at the flower market, the price may double.
Most Belgian azaleas are now hybridized with some azalea varieties from our country, and have become "Chinese Western azaleas," with about 200-300 varieties. They are also called "four-season azaleas," among which the most attractive varieties include Sihai Bo, Wang Guan, and Wubao.
If you are confident in your skills and want to grow some unique and small azalea varieties, you can choose Rhododendron indicum, which is an imported variety from Japan. A single plant will have two different flower colors, and the difficulty of maintenance is higher, with a particularly high price.
1. Reasons for flower bud drop:
Many people find it difficult to care for azaleas, especially during the flowering period or when the flower buds are developing. The flower buds easily fall off, which is actually due to potting during the flowering period or sudden environmental changes, as well as excessive changes in temperature, light, and water, which can cause flower buds to fall off.
Provide a stable environment for the potted azalea, scattered light, ventilation, and reasonable watering, keep the soil dry and breathable, and occasionally supplement fertilizer and water, the flower buds can naturally open.
2. Leaf drop:
Many friends often encounter the situation where the leaves of potted azaleas keep falling off after flowering, and the leaves become smaller and smaller. If not dealt with in time, the azalea will eventually become a bare stem, and by then, I won't be able to save your azalea.
How to care for and manage Japanese azaleas
It is because you haven't mastered the key points of caring for potted azaleas. The most important thing about caring for azaleas is to take good care of their roots. Azalea roots fear waterlogging and being suffocated. Once there is root suffocation, it will rot.
Root rot is not noticeable at first. The first sign is the continuous yellowing of leaves, which keep falling off, and flower buds will also fall off.
However, you cannot let the soil become too dry when caring for potted azaleas. If the soil is too dry and the potting soil is completely dry without补充ing water, it will also lead to continuous leaf drop, which is caused by root damage.
3. Soil mixture:
When caring for potted azaleas, you must choose a suitable soil mixture. It is best to choose a soil that is breathable, loose, and has moderate water retention. The soil for planting azaleas must be slightly acidic; do not use neutral or slightly alkaline soil.
If you are caring for potted azaleas on a balcony or windowsill, you should use better quality soil for planting. The first soil mixture is peat soil, leaf mold, and perlite mixed in a ratio of 5:3:2.
The second soil mixture can use common peat soil mixed with鹿沼土 in a ratio of 3:7. Many friends will find that the cost of鹿沼土 is quite high.
You also need to choose a pot that is not too deep and not too large when caring for potted azaleas. It is best to choose a red clay pot, tile pot, ceramic pot, or purple sand pot, or a plastic pot with more drainage holes.
If you use a ceramic pot or other pots with poor breathability and drainage, it is easy to cause root damage or even root rot later.
4. Buying and repotting precautions:
When buying azaleas on the market, you can buy those that have not been repotted, so you can repot them with suitable soil after their flowers have completely faded.
Choose to repot in late spring, after the flowering period, when the potting soil is half-dry, remove the soil from the pot, remove the topsoil, retain the soil mass protecting the roots, and replace it with new potting soil.
Usually, the杜鹃花 you buy from the flower market, flower shop, or online that have already been repotted are often planted in soil that is not very good. If you are caring for them outdoors, such as in the south, where杜鹃花 are exposed to semi-shaded conditions all year round, with a ventilated and well-lit environment and acidic rainwater irrigation, the potting soil dries faster, and the roots are less likely to accumulate water, thus preventing root suffocation and allowing杜鹃花 to grow well.
However, most of us care for杜鹃花 on balconies or windowsills, and many are flower friends in the north, where the environment is not as well-ventilated and well-lit, and the climate is not as humid and rainy, making it easy to encounter problems in caring for杜鹃花.
5. Reasonable watering:
Learning to water properly when planting potted azaleas is also very important. If the soil has a high content of particle soil, you can water it frequently because such soil has good breathability, and azaleas are less likely to rot, basically, when the top 2-3 centimeters of the soil is dry, water thoroughly.