Azalea is a plant that will not leave indifferent any grower. But it often happens that some time after the acquisition, the plant begins to die. It is necessary to create ideal conditions for it, otherwise the plant will begin to dry and drop leaves. Only in this case, the plant will thank you with its beautiful appearance for your efforts.
General information
It’s hard to understand how to care for azalea if you don’t know where it comes from. This allows you to better understand what conditions you need to create in order for the plant to feel at home. His homeland is India and China. Under natural conditions, it grows in the mountain forests of the northern hemisphere. From this, much can already be said about the habits of the plant. First of all, it is simply obliged to love humidity and to be adapted to rather low temperatures. The second point - direct sunlight, like intense heat, will be destructive for him.
Varieties
Today there are quite a few varieties of this plant. But for indoor cultivation, Indian is most often used, which is determined by its small size. This is an evergreen shrub that reaches 50 cm in height. Dark greens are relatively small, up to 3.5 cm in length. Usually they are covered with reddish hairs.
But the most important thing is the flowers. They reach 5 cm in diameter. At the same time, they gather in inflorescences, be terry or non-terry. The variety of colors is simply fantastic. Often, the petals can be two-tone, that is, white with a border. Therefore, having figured out how to care for azalea, you can diversify your flower garden with dozens of species.
Flower garden all year round
What else do you need to know? Azalea has different flowering periods:
If you buy a plant at the peak of flowering, then pay attention to the number of unblown buds. The more of them, the longer will be the pleasure of contemplating the plant. The purchased bush should not be transplanted until it fades. Otherwise, you risk being left without flowers for about a year.
Light mode
To understand well how to care for azalea, you need to have a good idea of the conditions under which it will feel normal. This plant is photophilous, but direct sunlight is contraindicated to it. Therefore, it is necessary to grow a flower on the windows facing east. But the northern windows are practically not suitable for her.
If they all face the south, then you need to cover it from direct sunlight. Most of all plants need additional lighting in the fall. It was at this time that flower buds and azalea buds formed. The backlight is arranged using fluorescent lamps. They are placed at a safe distance from the plant.
Temperature mode
This is an important moment for those who want a beautiful and magnificent azalea to grow in it. How to care for this plant at home, you must study before it appeared in your home. In this case, the chance increases that it will easily acclimatize to a new place and will please flowering.
It should be borne in mind that the plant does not feel well in hot rooms. Often, problems with growing in an apartment are associated with this. The plant feels best in rooms that are bright and cool, where the temperature is not higher than +18 degrees. In the autumn, the formation of flower buds occurs near the shrub. At this time, it is very good if the temperature is lowered to +6 degrees. Then guaranteed to be planted a large number of buds.
How to ensure such a regime in the apartment? Even outside the heating season, this can be very difficult. But you can "cheat" a little by placing the plant in the bathroom, overlaying the pot with crushed ice or spraying it with water. When flower buds begin to form, the temperature can be raised.
Airing and hardening
Most varieties of this plant are adapted for growing in gardens. Indoor species are also very fond of fresh air. This must be considered if you want to grow beautiful azalea. How to care at home, usually prompted by breeders or sellers in professional salons. And they often advise placing your plants in the garden or on the balcony. Here they can be right up to the coldest weather. If the pots are located in the garden, it is necessary to shade them so that the sun does not burn the delicate leaves.
Do not forget that you need to bring garden plants before the autumn cold. In most regions, this means until the end of August. Indoor azalea does not tolerate extreme temperature changes. If you have allowed hypothermia, then, most likely, it will drop the buds.
Watering
This is another important point that you need to learn for beginner gardeners who are just starting to learn how to care for azaleas at home. The most common mistake is over watering. If you purchased a plant in a store, then it is recommended to immediately examine the earthen lump. It should be slightly moist, but not wet. If water oozes from the pot, or you smell bad, the plant is clearly flooded. You can try to dry it, but it is best to transplant it into another soil.
The other extreme is excessive overdrying when the earthen lump forms a hard crust. In this case, it is necessary to put the container in a container with water for 30 minutes. During this time, the earthen lump is completely saturated with water. After that, its normal condition must be maintained by periodic irrigation. Most often, doing this once a week is enough.
It is necessary to learn how to distinguish well when a plant needs additional moisture, since it is impossible to take care of azalea at home without optimizing watering. And the easiest way to do this is as follows. Take the pot in your hands after wetting the soil. Now the hand knows the weight of wet soil. As you dry, periodically raise the pot. So you learn how to navigate. Once the pot has become too light, the plant needs to be watered.
Air humidity
Probably most of all, this indicator is important for the home azalea flower. How to care for this capricious beauty, today we are trying to make it out in steps. But one thing is certain. Heating batteries are the main enemy. Not only do they increase the temperature of the air beyond any norm, they also dry it very much.
If the pot is next to the central heating battery, then perhaps it will even bloom. But the petals will crumble very quickly. You won’t even have time to admire your beauty. Therefore, take a damp cloth and hang on the batteries. It is advisable to equip them with a valve so that you can regulate the temperature in the room yourself.
Often beginner growers are interested in how to care for blooming azalea? And the first rule is to provide the plant with sufficient air humidity. To do this, next to the flower, you can put a pallet in which put a little pebble and pour water. This will not only humidify the air, but also optimize the temperature. Long flowering directly depends on this parameter. Therefore, do not neglect the frequent spraying. Then the flowers will retain their decorative effect for a long time.
Soil for plant
If you buy an adult plant, then usually it is already planted in the prepared soil. Often this is a professional soil mixture. Therefore, one problem becomes less. But when studying how to care for azaleas purchased in a pot, one can not stop at this point for two reasons:
- If the soil is infected with harmful insects or pathogenic spores, the sooner you replace it, the better.
- As the plants grow, you need to periodically increase the pot or tranship. That is, you still need to know what the soil mixture should consist of.
To grow this plant requires acidic soil. It should be light, loose and at the same time nutritious. But finding it on sale can be difficult. It can be replaced with a mixture of peat and coniferous land. Such soil will be acidic and light, but it contains few nutrients. This can be compensated for using biohumus.
If you decide to buy ready-made soil in the store, then the task will be even easier. Just be sure to pay attention to the composition and date of packaging. The soil should be fresh, with good additives. If it is expired, and the storage conditions are violated, then such a composition will only cause harm. Do not forget that you need to make a rather large layer of expanded clay in the pot, at least 3 centimeters.
Top dressing
All flowering plants are very demanding on the presence of sufficient nutrients in the soil. Blooming azalea is no exception. How to care for this wonderful plant at home, we are with you today and we are analyzing with all the details. Feeding has its own characteristics, so you need to talk about it in more detail.
First of all, remember that fertilizer should not be applied every month, as is the case with other indoor plants, but with each watering. Therefore, we take any complex compounds that are recommended for azaleas. Only apply them in reduced doses.
But this is what concerns the flowering period. And how to care for the azalea flower during growth? Classic dressings are useful here. They need to be applied once every 20 days, alternating between organic and mineral fertilizers.
Rest period
It’s even difficult to say when it’s important to pay maximum attention to this plant. When it is covered with lush buds, or in between flowering. One thing is for sure, if you know how to care for azalea in winter, then it will definitely reward you with lush flowering next season.
When all the buds have fallen, you need to cut all the pedicels and brown leaves. It’s very good to take the pot a few centimeters more than before and move your azalea into it. Fill the empty space with fresh earth. The flower loves wide and low capacities, due to the characteristics of the root system.
Before reaching the age of three, the transplant procedure is performed every year. After that, you can navigate by the state of the plant and earthen coma. If it is completely braided by roots, then measures must be taken. What else do you need to know about caring for potted azaleas in winter? It is necessary to reduce air temperature and watering, cancel spraying. The created dormant period guarantees rapid growth and good flowering.
Crown formation
This is another important point in the cycle, how to care at home. The azalea flower is an evergreen shrub, so pruning is necessary for it. After flowering you will quickly understand why. Elongated shoots make the baby very sloppy. Moreover, if everything is left unchanged, the buds will be formed less and less each time. This is logical. After all, the plant gives strength to the formation of green mass.
Therefore, after flowering and transplantation to a new place, it is necessary to arm with a pruner and cut out all broken or too long shoots. In parallel, remove weak, as well as branches, which clearly interfere with everything else. Then in the spring you will have a bright, flowering bush, which is no different from those that come from professional nurseries.
Diseases and Pests
Most often, they strike precisely the most beloved and dear to the heart of the plant. And azalea is no exception. Therefore, the owner must know the main symptoms and methods of dealing with them.
- Leaves turn yellow or fall. This most often indicates that the plant has little moisture. The same symptom may indicate sunburn.
- During flowering, buds are dumped. Perhaps the plant was watered with hard water. Similarly, the flower responds to a lack of mineral fertilizers.
- The buds fall, and a spider web has appeared. The culprit is a tick.
- Young leaves are folded into a straw. Here the reason is the strawberry tick.
Given the symptoms, you need to revise the rules for caring for the plant, and also use special pest control products. Following these rules, you can be sure that the plant will reward you with beautiful flowers. And if there is enough time, you can practice and create your own bonsai. To do this, you need to correctly form the crown of the bush. During flowering, such a wonderful garden will cause a lot of admiration.