This bright exotic plant, striking for its extraordinary beauty and colors, is considered to be an indoor flower. Few people know that Japanese azalea, if the rules on planting and care are followed, can decorate any garden plot. The ornamental shrub belongs to the family of heath, a group of flowering rhododendrons. Most varieties do not shed their leaves, remaining evergreen.
The culture was originally grown and cultivated in Japan, becoming a true symbol of the country of the rising sun. The bushes are plastic and perfectly amenable to pruning. Because of this quality, it is used as a bonsai, to create floral arrangements or individual plantings in landscape design. It has a very slow growth rate and does not exceed 1.5 meters in height in the open ground.
Information!
Over a 10-year period, the azalea grows no more than 40 cm.
Shrubs are lush, with high branching. The brittle branches are light gray in color. Small, up to 3 cm leaves are oblong in shape. The upper part is glossy, dark green. The lower part is matte, with light pubescence. The shape and size of the flowers differ from each other depending on the variety. There are varieties with large, large, macro flowers, or small, simple forms.
Particularly popular with garden culture is due to a wide range of colors. Its hues vary from snow-white to pink and purple. There are plants with bicolor color of inflorescences. Flowering is long, depending on weather and regional conditions, can last up to 2 months. The blooming azalea resembles a colorful lush ball, with no leaves or branches visible on the bushes. The extraordinary fragrance is incomparable.
Synopsis!
The most frost-resistant varieties can tolerate sub-zero temperatures up to 27 degrees.
Due to high decorative qualities it is widely used by designers to create living flowering hedges.
Japanese azalea varieties
There is a huge number of varieties, with different flower shape, color, size.
- “Adonis.” Deservedly received the title of one of the most beautiful varieties. It has a rounded crown of dense structure and powerful shoots. Leaf is small, with a glossy sheen, olive shades, flowers – white. Does not tolerate drafts and direct sunlight.
- “Drapa.” A new selection of late maturity. Characteristic differences – original shades of flowers, from delicate pink to rich crimson. Flowering begins in mid-summer and lasts up to a month.
- “Melina.” The graceful little bush does not exceed 39 cm in height and 50 cm in width. Prefers humid cool climate and shaded areas. Numerous inflorescences of pink and crimson color, with original inwardly bent petal form. Distinguished by the unusual shape of the leaves in the form of an ellipse, which change color in the fall to yellow.
- ‘Koenningstein‘. Broad in volume, up to 1 m bushes do not grow more than half a meter in height. Rare specimens reach 80-100 cm as adults. Bright red-purple flowers are shaped like a large bellflower. The flowering period is the end of spring.
- “Blaus Pink”. Evergreen dwarf species with a dense crown. Under unfavorable conditions, the foliage is partially discarded. Blossoms with pink flowers in late spring to early summer.
- “Vix Scarlet. Evergreen shrub popular with designers, used as bonsai due to its miniature size and fluffy rounded-flat crown. The height does not exceed 60 cm. Flowers are red with orange hues. Blooms between May and June.
- “Geisha Orange”. Winter-hardy, one of the fastest-growing, gives a growth of 20 to 30 cm in a year. Diameter – about 1.5 meters, in height – no more than 1 m. Inflorescences of small flowers of bright orange color. Duration of growth – up to 30 years.
- “Maisnii”. Young shoots are pubescent, brown-gray in color. The bush is not tall, with a huge number of branches. Flowers are snow-white, large, up to 8 cm in diameter. Does not tolerate excessive moisture and direct sunlight. Pruning and pruning are required at the end of spring. Growing in loose fibrous substrate is recommended.
- “Golden. High-growing, up to 180 cm, is frost-resistant. Flowers are yellow, with orange hues, small in size. Does not tolerate stagnant water, direct sunlight. Prefers penumbra and humid climate.
- “Marushka”. Evergreen dwarf variety. The crown is dense, resembling a pillow. The maximum height does not exceed 40 cm, in width – up to 80 cm. The foliage is glossy, dark green, in the fall it changes shade to bronze. Heat-resistant, tolerates a little shade and dry weather well.
Garden Japanese azalea with good care grows for a long time. Annual pruning allows you to shape the crown to any taste.
Planting
When selecting plants for a homestead plot, there are some rules to follow.
- Purchase seedlings in the spring period. A plant planted in the fall may not take root and die in the cold.
- Check the quality of the soil in the container when buying, the bush with a strengthened root system will hold firmly in it.
- Choose seedlings with a large number of unopened buds, there should not be a lot of open flowers.
- The foliage should have a characteristic glossy shine and intense green color, without brown spots.
The varieties “Babushka”, “Kermesina”, “Rosalind”, “Rosinetta”, “Melina”, “Sachiko”, “Rococo”, “Petticoat”, “Schneeperle” have proven to be excellent.
The place for the shrub is chosen taking into account the quality of the soil and sunlight. You should not place the planting in an open place, with drafts and direct sunlight. The pit for seedlings should be twice as big as the earth clod from the pot. At the bottom, lay a drainage layer to avoid stagnant water. Add a mixture of peat and compost (humus). If you want, you can buy ready-made mixes in specialized stores.
Tip!
The plant has shallow roots. To avoid damaging them when planting, change only the top layer.
The distance between the bushes should not be less than half a meter. After planting, the soil is tamped and mulched with bark, peat, cut grass, abundantly watered. Planting Japanese azalea in heavy soil requires preparation: the soil is loosened and sand, peat, compost, mineral fertilizers are added.
Care
To get the full growth and flowering of this ornamental crop, certain rules should be followed regularly.
- Watering. It is desirable to use standing water, watering as the soil dries up. Shrubs react equally negatively to overwatering and lack of moisture. Stop watering at the end of August.
- Feeding. It is useful to make at the beginning of the growing season special fertilizers for rhododendrons or a solution of cowpea. Spraying the entire period of vegetation, except for flowering. After the azalea blooms, nitrogen-potassium fertilizers are applied under it. Plants do not tolerate wood ash, chlorine and lime.
- Pruning. Starts 2 weeks after the end of flowering. Branches are shortened by 1/3 for vigorous growth in the spring. Trim every 2-3 weeks depending on the desired shape and condition of the crown. Be sure to remove dry branches and inflorescences.
- Covering. For the winter period, in order to protect against frosts, the plantings are insulated. To do this, first abundantly moisten the soil, from above cover with conifers, peat, straw. Large branches are ducked to the ground, fixed with a metal frame.
Tip: It is necessary to periodically acidify the soil near the shrubs
Treat plants with special preparations for the development of immunity and in order to prevent diseases and pests.
Propagation
Given that the garden crop grows slowly, virtually no seeds are used for propagation. The most popular method is cuttings.
- From healthy strong branches cut cuttings up to 10 cm in size at an angle of 45 degrees.
- The bottom cut is treated with a growth stimulant.
- Cuttings with 2-3 leaves are placed in peat pots with drainage holes. The bottom part should be at a depth of 2-3 cm.
- Water abundantly and create a greenhouse effect with a film cover. The film should not come into contact with the seedlings.
- Maintain a temperature of 20-22 degrees, moisten as necessary.
If all the requirements are met, the seedlings take 2 months to root and are ready for planting in the open ground.
Diseases and pests
Like all garden crops, azaleas have diseases that must be controlled:
- phytophthora;
- sooty fungus;
- Fusarium wilt;
- chlorosis.
For preventive purposes, fungicides and folk remedies are used. When affected by fungal diseases, it is necessary to take measures at the first signs to avoid the death of the shrub.
Among the pests are noted:
- aphids;
- scab;
- mites (spider mites, red mites, rhododendron mites);
- powdery mildew.
Properly selected insecticides will get rid of pests in a short time.
At the first signs of wilting, it is worth checking the condition of the soil, watering with the addition of vinegar or citric acid. The depressed state can be caused by sunburn, lack of fertilizer or soil compaction. If the adult plant does not flower, it should be moved to another site by transplanting. If evergreen varieties have falling leaves, this is a sign of high lime content in the soil. It should also be replanted.
If the recommendations and rules are followed, the Japanese garden azalea will delight for many years with its flowering and fragrance.
