Caring for the azalea: Cut & water properly

Garden and indoor azaleas show their blossom splendor at different times of the year. The cuts are also slightly different. Here you can find out how to care for the different azaleas.

Regular care of azaleas (rhododendron spec.) unavoidable. Watering keeps the plant alive, while the right pruning can ensure profuse flowering and a beautiful shape. We'll show you what proper azalea care looks like. You can find more about wintering, plants, common diseases and propagating azaleas in our Review article on azaleas.

Caring for indoor azaleas

Indoor azalea care is not particularly difficult. Nevertheless, you should heed a few tips so that you can enjoy the flowering for longer. Regular watering, fertilizing and pruning are good for the azalea. She also likes to be outside in the summer as soon as it stops freezing at night.

Water indoor azaleas

When watering your azalea, it is best to use rainwater. Other water with a low lime content can also be used. It is important that the substrate is always moist. Indoor azaleas dislike waterlogging and drought. It is therefore important to ensure sufficient water drainage. The pot must have a drainage hole and should have a drainage layer of potsherds, stones or expanded clay in the lower area. In addition, the drained water should be removed from the saucer or the planter about 15 minutes after watering. Even in winter it is crucial that the soil never dries out. However, since it is cooler and darker in winter and the plant evaporates less water, a little less water is sufficient to keep the substrate constantly moist. In addition, indoor azaleas should be sprayed regularly with lime-free water at room temperature, as they appreciate high humidity.

Cut indoor azaleas

The best time to prune the azalea is after the flowering period, around May. Here, dead flowers and plant parts are removed so that the plant no longer has to invest any energy in them. In addition, early pruning is important so that no buds are removed by the pruning at a later date. If the azalea does not grow according to your expectations, you can also intervene here by cutting it. Using pruning shears, cut the branches just above the shoots or leaves that grow further inside. This promotes more branched growth without gaps. Following the cut you should use the Fertilize azaleato support growth.

Tip: In order to enable unhindered photosynthesis and thus healthy growth, you should occasionally remove dust from the leaves of the azalea.

Care of garden azaleas

In addition to the room azaleas, the garden azaleas are also extremely popular, as they beautify the garden with their eye-catching flowers in spring. Even if the casting is quite easy, the cutting measures require a bit of tact. However, trimming is only necessary if you are no longer satisfied with the appearance of your azalea.

tip: Although the plant - like the indoor azaleas - keeps its foliage in winter, the maintenance of the Japanese azalea is the same as that of the deciduous outdoor azaleas.

Water garden azaleas

The azaleas like neither wet nor dry. Therefore, make sure to keep the soil evenly moist. Low-calcium water is recommended as irrigation water, preferably rainwater. In the hot summer months, watering is correspondingly greater and more frequent than in winter. Of course, if it rains more often in summer, you can do without additional watering.

Cut garden azaleas

As outdoor azaleas grow, they can lose their shape over time and buds are mainly formed in the outer area. A pruning can then help the azalea to new splendor. When you should cut garden azaleas depends, among other things, on the age of the azaleas. Older azaleas tend to become bare and can be rejuvenated by pruning. The cuts can be divided into topiary cuts and rejuvenation cuts.

After the flowering period, all withered flowers are removed first. This promotes bud formation and thus flowering in the following year.

Topiary of garden azaleas:

The topiary is done at the beginning of spring in March and ensures a beautiful appearance. First, all dead and withered plant parts are cut off. To counteract bare growth in the following years, you can regularly cut off individual shoots on the main shoot. Unnecessary branches that don't fit into the picture are also cut off during the shape cut.

tip: When topiary, cut the shoot so that the cut is quite flush or sits just above an emerging shoot or leaf - this is where the azalea will continue to grow later.

Rejuvenation Pruning of Garden Azaleas:

A rejuvenation pruning is done on older specimens that are to be reduced in size or encouraged to grow new at the base. The rejuvenation cut also takes place in the spring and is comparatively radical. The shoots of the old azalea are shortened to about 50 cm so that new growth occurs. This pruning can also be done gradually to protect the plant by cutting vigorously in one year and then again more severely in the following year.

tip: If you want to cut a Japanese azalea, the rejuvenation cut follows the same principle and should definitely be staggered over two years. Here you can even shorten to 30 to 50 cm above the ground.

Azalea withering: after-bloom care

Once the azalea has faded, it is important to remove the faded flowers. You can either do this by hand by simply breaking out the flowers, or you can use pruning shears. Indoor azaleas can also be repotted after flowering and then placed outside in a cool, shady spot. Outdoors, even in the shade, there is significantly more light that can be used for photosynthesis than indoors, which is why a stay in the garden is good for the indoor azalea.

Repot azaleas 

Garden azaleas are not usually planted in pots, while indoor azaleas always are. Indoor azaleas should be repotted about every two years. Use a larger pot and be sure to use suitable substrate suitable for azaleas and rhododendrons. Here, for example, is ours Plantura Organic Acid Soil which has an acidic pH value and thus contributes to the healthy growth of the azaleas. Our soil manages with less peat than conventional peat soil and emits less CO over the entire life cycle₂ the end. Before you fill in the substrate, you should spread a layer of potsherds or expanded clay on the bottom of the pot to help the water drain. Then put the azalea in the pot and fill in any gaps around the edges with soil.

To make it easier for you to choose the right azalea, we have put together an overview of the most beautiful ones in our article azalea species compiled for you.