Drop a little of it in the pot, and the azalea leaves will no longer turn yellow, and the pot will be filled with 100 flowers!

Maintenance Tips 1: Azalea likes acid

I wonder if any of my friends have noticed that the leaves of their azaleas turn yellow easily, and it is difficult to turn them green again even after watering them with ferrous sulfate. Why is this? In fact, this is related to the soil. Rhododendron likes acidic soil. If the soil is alkaline, it will "throw a tantrum".

So what to do to get an acidic soil. Every household uses white vinegar. In addition to its function as seasoning, it can also be used to adjust the pH value of the soil!

Every time you water your azalea, add a few drops of white vinegar to the water to create an acidic soil.

Of course, if you are planting it in the ground or find it troublesome, you can bury sulfur powder in the soil. The sulfur powder will be oxidized after being buried, which can also make it acidic.

Maintenance point 2: Fertilization

Rhododendron is a plant that likes fertilizer very much, but it is easily damaged by fertilizer. When fertilizing azaleas, you must follow the principle of “applying small amounts of fertilizer frequently”. Otherwise, the result will be more harm than good if the azaleas die from fertilizer damage due to improper fertilization!

Now is the flowering season of azalea. I will mix cake fertilizer with water and use it for azalea. Cake fertilizer can provide nutrients for azaleas, thus ensuring the nutrients needed for flowering.

Of course, cake fertilizer alone is not enough. I will also use urea because azalea is a plant that blooms on new shoots. If you want it to bloom well, the branches must grow well.

△New shoots

Urea is a high-nitrogen fertilizer that can promote the growth of branches. After the branches grow, more flower buds can be differentiated.

Normally, when applying fertilizer, cake fertilizer and urea are used alternately. Use cake fertilizer this week and urea next week to ensure a comprehensive supply of nutrients.

Maintenance point 3: Reasonable pruning

A single azalea flower can bloom for a long time, but once it fades, it needs to be pruned to avoid nutrient diversion that inhibits later flower formation.

Also, weak branches should be pruned, as weak branches cannot produce large, colorful flowers.

As shown in the picture above, use scissors to cut off one-third of the branch after it blooms. This will be enough to enhance internal ventilation, increase light, and promote branch growth.

After pruning after the flowers have withered, if you manage the water and fertilizer well, it will bloom again at the end of June, thus extending the flowering period.

Maintenance Tip 4: Pests and Diseases

After three years of growing azalea, I found that it is very susceptible to red spider mites and brown spot disease, especially during the rainy season, and requires more management.

Red spider mites are a type of spider mite that sucks the sap of plants. Although this will not cause death, it will seriously affect their photosynthesis and cause a decrease in the number of flowers.

In the case of brown spot disease, large areas of brown to dark brown spots will appear, and in severe cases, death may occur! So don't take it lightly.

Use avermectin to kill red spider mites, spray once a week, and do it three or four times in a row to kill them. Remember to spray the back of the leaves, as that is where red spider mites are most likely to infest the area.

For brown spot disease, spray 800 times diluted thiophanate-methyl or 1000 times diluted leaf spot killer once every 10 days. Spray 2 to 3 times in a row to see the effect.

Photography: CJA CC Tuan Tuan

Email for submission to Flower Cultivation Encyclopedia: [email protected]

In fact, azalea is a very easy flower to grow.

As long as you master the method,

It can also make the azaleas at home bloom in full bloom!