Extension‐Wise
Published Weekly in the Madison County Journal ‐ Adam Speir, Madison County Agriculture Agent Azalea Pruning May 2, 2013 Informa on courtesy of Mr. Frank Watson, Wilkes County Extension Agent Azaleas are a tradi onal part of Southern landscapes. University of Georgia Coopera ve Extension experts say prune azaleas now, a er they have bloomed, to allow the plants to prepare for blooming next year. In Georgia, many azaleas begin to set flower buds in July. Therefore, pruning a er early July may reduce next year's flower produc on. Compact plants can be maintained with minimal effect on flower produc on. Two pruning techniques or types of cuts are used: thinning cuts and heading cuts. Thinning refers to the complete removal of branches back to another branch or main trunk. Thinning is used to remove leggy branches that extend beyond the canopy of the plant, to reduce the size of the plant or to remove any damaged or diseased wood. Thinning can be done any me of the year without significant impact on flowering, growth or cold hardiness. Heading refers to the cu ng back of a branch, not necessarily to a side branch. Vigorous new shoots will emerge within 6 inches of the pruning cut. Heading is usually done with three goals in mind: to reduce the size of the plant, to increase the number of branches or to rejuvenate old, overgrown plants. Severe pruning of old, overgrown plants to within 6 to 12 inches of ground level is a common type of heading. New shoots emerging from the old stems should be thinned out and headed back to encourage branching and a full canopy. The best me to make heading cuts is just a er the plant flowers out in the spring. This allows sufficient me for the new growth to mature and harden‐off before winter and for flower buds to form in late summer for the following year. Young plants should be pruned about six weeks a er blooming and therea er as branches develop sufficient length. However, do not prune later than the first week in July, so plants will have me to ini ate new growth and bloom buds. Small azalea plants should be pruned several mes during the growing season to develop well‐branched plants. This involves pruning the ps of the new, individual branches a er five or six inches of new growth has been produced. This pruning not only results in a compact, well‐branched plant, but also one that will produce many more blooms. Azaleas o en become en rely too large for the area they occupy, especially when they are used as founda on plants. If this happens, cut back the large plants to 12 inches above the ground level in early spring. Growth of the new stems and leaves will be quite rapid once new growth buds appear on the stem. Keep the soil moist during the period a er severe pruning. Azalea limbs are killed occasionally by fungus diseases or by freezing weather, which kills the conduc ng ssue and causes the bark to split. These limbs should be pruned out with small hand pruning shears. Heavier loping shears should be used for cu ng out larger stems. Cut the diseased or dead limbs back far enough to expose live wood. If flecks of diseased or dead wood remain visible inside the cut surface, con nue to cut farther back on the stem to expose only healthy wood. Azalea plants o en produce a few tall shoots rela vely late in the season that do not ini ate flower buds. These shoots not only detract from the general shape of the plant, but also fail to branch properly the following year. Cut these tall shoots out during late October or early November.