No other plant can beat the beauty of having colorful azaleas in your garden. Azaleas have the ability to liven up the entire appearance of your garden with their vibrant hues. However, if not maintained and pruned properly, they have the tendency to overgrow and make the garden look unkempt.
Contents
How to Prune Azaleas
Azaleas are delicate flowers, which is why they should be pruned with caution. Unfortunately, I had to learn this the hard way. This is why I am sharing all the tips and precautions for pruning azaleas in this article, so no one else loses their azalea plants to wrong snips.
Tools Needed For Pruning
You can not start pruning and snipping your plant with the huge garden shears present in your garage. Azaleas are small delicate flowers; one wrong cut can result in less blossom in the next season. So, for pruning azaleas, you need small clippers and a pair of gloves to keep your hands safe. In addition to that, always use a clean set of tools for pruning your azaleas. If you use unclean clippers, they may transfer bacterias to your plant, endangering its life.
Process Of Pruning
Once you have taken your garden clippers out, it is time to snip some branches. The first thing to remember is that azalea plants do not require heavy pruning; they only need a little shaping every now and then. First, cut off all the dead flowers hanging from the stems. Make sure you are cutting only the dead flowers. From my personal experience, pruning the flowers first makes the job easier, as then you can see the branches more clearly.
After flowers, you need to get rid of the dead stems dangling from the plant or the ones that are growing out of their way. Try to cut the branches with straight cuts. Do not let yourself get carried away while snipping, and only cut ⅓ part of a branch. Once you have removed all the deceased parts from the plant, trim it into your desired shape, and voila, your plant is back to looking fresh! Azaleas do not require any more pruning than this.
When to Prune Azaleas?
Azalea flowers do not require regular pruning sessions. As it is a very low-maintenance plant, it does not need to be pruned every other week. However, if you are pruning to increase the growth of your azalea plant, then the ideal time to take your garden shears out is right after the blossoms fade.
In simpler words, the azalea plant usually forms buds in late July that will turn into flowers in the next season. The best time to snip the plant is right after old blossoms fade and new buds are formed. If you prune after the buds are formed, your plant will not bear flowers in the next season.
Why is Pruning Necessary?
Unlike other plants, azaleas do not require heavy pruning sessions every once a month. Trimming the plant even once a season will be enough. Azaleas need to be trimmed when they have dead flowers and stems dangling after the spring bloom fades.
Moreover, this plant needs to be snipped when it has long stems growing out of shape or poking into other plants. Pruning is important if you want to maintain a healthy look and growth of your azaleas plant. If you do not snip it after spring fades, your plant may not have as much growth and flowers as it normally does.
Overgrown Azaleas
Azaleas are bushy plants, but even the bushiest plants need to be trimmed every once in a while to maintain their shape. Pruning is necessary to keep the plant from looking like a jungle. An overgrown azalea will hinder the appearance of your garden by giving it a very unkempt look. Furthermore, overgrown azaleas do not bear as many flowers like the ones that are pruned every season.
In addition to that, when you have an overgrown azalea in your garden, all of its stems and vines poke and grow into the plants present in your garden, which affects their growth as well. Getting rid of long branches will also pave the way for sunlight and air to reach the plant's roots, which will further promote healthy growth.
Precautions
While you are out on the mission to turn your overgrown azalea into a well-maintained and beautiful plant, there are a few things you should keep in mind. The first precaution is never to snip off more than a ⅓ part of any branch. Make sure you use sharp and clean clippers for pruning your azaleas. Using old and untidy clippers will open doors for bacterias to infest your plant.
When you are pruning your azaleas, always start in the early morning. This way, you will be able to cut and trim your plant and get rid of all the debris by the end of the day. Never cut azalea branches in a slanted or tilted way; always make square cuts. Moreover, if a branch has more than 2 to 3 shoots, cut a few of them off. Leave the ones that look more healthy and promising.
FAQs
How late can you prune azaleas?
How do you make Azalea bushier?
Conclusion
Azaleas are quite a low-maintenance plant. However, that does not mean you leave them to grow as much as they want to, as they will spread their branches in all directions. Pruning once a season is a good way to keep azaleas in shape and promote healthy growth. I hope this article gave you all the knowledge you needed to prune your azaleas.
