Growing Azaleas

On one of our trips to Baguio City two summers ago, I bought a pot of azalea.  I was reassured by the garden owner (I bought it at one of the houses near my lola’s place) that azalea is easy to grow and cultivate. She even said that it needs full sun and a little watering. I believed her, not knowing that this particular plant needs tender loving care for it to bloom.  I waited for two years for some shoots, until a month ago, I saw those little pink spikes at the end of the tender leaves. They didn’t bloom, the flowers died looking like how they look in the picture.

What’s wrong with this plant, I asked myself. I had mistakenly pruned some of the small side branches. What a big mistake!  I later learned through some research that pruning can help promote bushy growth but it is advised never to prune established plant since it may not bloom again for two or three years.

Azaleas are members of the Rhododendron family. They are grown from seeds, cuttings or grafting. Most home gardeners do not start Azalea from seeds since a new plant can take two to ten years to produce flowers. They are acid loving plants and grow best in light shade. They prefer a moist, well-drained soil. Using plenty of inorganic matter does help.  The weather is cold in Baguio so plants thrive even in full sun.  I have transferred the pot near our dwarf kalamansi trees and it is showing little pink blooms in almost all of the branches. How nice! I can’t wait to see the day when they would all grow into those wonderful flowers just like I’ve seen in some gardens.  I’ll take pictures, promise!

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