Skip to main content

How to grow your own azaleas now for striking spring blooms

If you’re looking for a beautiful and easy to care for shrub or bush, look no further than azaleas. They have lovely flowers, aren’t difficult to grow, and are a good size for most gardens. However, if you’ve never grown a bush before, then you might be a little anxious about how to plant and care for one. Do you grow them from a seed or start with a seedling? How much should you fertilize them? Do azaleas need a lot of sun and water, and what is their preferred climate? If you’re wondering about all these questions, then don’t worry! We have the answers, here in this simple guide to growing and caring for azaleas.

Deciduous varieties of azalea

Electric Lights Double Pink is a variety developed by the University of Minnesota. It features a strong, slightly spicy scent and is deciduous, meaning its leaves turn beautiful colors during autumn. In early spring, it produces flowers in a stunning shade of pink. Additionally, this variety has increased cold hardiness and is great for zones 4 through 7.

Related Videos

If you’re looking for a variety to really brighten up your shady areas, consider Fireball. True to its name, this variety has gorgeous red and orange flowers starting in mid to late spring. Despite their fiery look, these flowers have a remarkably sweet scent. Adding to its flaming appearance, this variety is deciduous, with dark leaves that slowly turn dark reddish-purple during fall. This variety is slightly smaller, growing to between 4 and 6 feet tall.

Fireball azaleas with red and orange flowers

Evergreen varieties of azalea

Bollywood is a great choice if you’re looking for a low border plant, as they stay quite short. It also has variegated leaves, with a dark green center and silverish-white edges. If you’re worried about losing these leaves in the fall, then don’t worry! Bollywood is an evergreen variety. Its flowers are a dark, rich shade of pink with a subtle sweet scent, and they begin to show up in late spring and early summer.

George L. Taber is a stunning azalea variety. It’s a tall evergreen variety, growing to between 6 and 8 feet tall and 5 to 6 feet wide. They make beautiful dividers if you’re looking for a way to separate two sections of a garden or yard. The real highlight of this variety, though, are its flowers. Blooming in early spring and again at the beginning of fall, George L. Taber azaleas are pale pink with a small scattering of dark pink spots and have a light, subtle scent.

A close up of George L. Tabor azaleas, which are pale pink with dark pink spots

Planting azaleas

When should you plant azaleas?

Azaleas can be planted in either late spring or early fall. As with most shrubs, azaleas are typically transplanted into gardens as saplings or seedlings, which are available at most nurseries. However, you can start your azaleas from seed if you want to. Seeds should be planted in late spring, but will see more success if you start them indoors and transplant them when they’re a little older.

Where is the best place to plant azaleas?

Your planting location should have well-draining soil that’s slightly acidic and rich in organic matter. Azaleas are quite picky about the type of soil they will grow in, so it’s a good idea to test the soil before you begin planting. If your soil is low in nutrients, consider adding compost to it. Pine needles and coffee grounds are both good ways to make your soil more acidic, while sand or gravel can improve poor drainage.

When it comes to sun, azaleas tend to do best in either filtered sun or partial sun. They can burn in full sun, especially in hotter climates. However, deciduous azaleas will produce more flowers when exposed to more light, so it’s a tricky balance to maintain. Try to find an area with something tall overhead, like a tree or the overhang of a roof, which will provide some shade while still allowing the azaleas to absorb light.

Yellow azalea flowers

Caring for azaleas

Azaleas tend to have shallow root systems. This means they’re more sensitive to drought and nutrient deficiencies than other plants, since their roots cannot reach as far into the soil, where water or nutrient reserves may be. Keep a careful eye on your azaleas, and water them when the soil dries out below the top inch of soil. If you notice stunted growth or discolored leaves, they may be lacking in nutrients. To best remedy the situation, test your soil to see what specifically is missing.

You can prune your azaleas to control their size, improve their overall health, and increase the amount of flowers they put out. Use a pair of sharp, clean garden shears. It’s best to prune them during late spring or early summer, when the flowers are fading and withering. Pruning later in the year should be limited to damaged or diseased branches, otherwise you’ll be pruning away the new flower buds.

Whether you choose to plant one of the varieties we’ve listed here or explore others (such as the white-flowered Cascade or the yellow Lemon Light), you’ll be sure to see success with the tips we’ve outlined here. It might take a bit of trial and error to get the lighting just right, but don’t worry. For as picky as azaleas can be, they’re also fairly resilient, and can be quite forgiving as you learn.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
What does NPK mean when it comes to fertilizing plants?
Your guide to the main nutrients in the NPK ratio for robust plant growth
A gardener fertilizing a young plant

Just like humans, plants need food in order to stay healthy and strong. Fertilizers give plants full-sized leaves, healthy roots, and vibrant flowers. Without sufficient soil nutrients, plants will grow very slowly, developing weak stems and pale leaves. If you're going for a verdant, vibrant garden landscape or indoor jungle, plant food is a must.

But not all fertilizers are built the same. To distinguish between different fertilizers, you’ll want to reference the NPK ratio. But what exactly do these numbers mean? To help your plants grow robustly, we’ve got the details ahead.

Read more
Plant these stunning flowering shrubs for a showstopping garden display this spring
5 flowering shrubs you'll love for your outdoor space
White azalea flowers

If you want a garden full of beautiful flowering plants, your first instinct might be to plant flowers, or perhaps even a tree. Gardeners often overlook flowering shrubs, but they can produce some of the most beautiful flowers! They’re easier to plant than a tree, and since all the flowers are on one plant, they're quicker to care for than flowers. Want to add flowering bushes to your yard? Here are our top picks!

Beauty bush
Beauty bush has several names, including Linnaea amabilis, Kolkwitzia amabilis, or simply beauty bush. Native to China, this shrub is popular for being extremely easy to grow. It's tolerant of all soil types, moderately drought tolerant, and grows quickly. The beauty bush earns its name by growing many pale pink, bell-shaped flowers in the spring. This shrub can grow to between 6 and 10 feet tall and wide, but you can also keep it smaller through regular pruning.

Read more
The best little flowers to grow when you’re low on space – plant these this spring
Grow these little flowers for a small but beautiful garden
Forget-me-nots in a cup

Many people dream of large, sprawling gardens bursting with flowers. However, that type of garden isn’t right for everyone. Whether you’re short of space, prefer smaller flowers, or just need some little flowers to mix with your larger ones, we’ve compiled four of the best cute flowers that stay small. Plant these flowers to maximize beauty while minimizing space.

Forget-me-nots
Forget-me-nots, also known as scorpion grass, are sweet little flowers. They’re classically pale blue, but can also be light pink or white. These flowers typically only grow to heights of around 5 inches and can grow in small clumps for a more full appearance. They prefer moist, well-draining soil, but can develop mildew if the soil becomes waterlogged.

Read more