Fine bushes and the real small trees of azaleas not only can decorate apartments, loggias, terraces, but also are successfully used in landscaping of garden. There are frost-resistant grades which well take root in midland. It is possible to plant azaleas to the open ground if the suitable grade is chosen, certain conditions of cultivation are met.
High-quality azaleas
That the plant has quickly taken root in garden and was pleasing to the eye from season during season, it is important to find out features of the existing grades and to pick up optimum for the specific seasonal dacha.
Azaleas – relatives of rhododendrons. If the first have flowers with five stamens, then the second – with much bigger quantity, for the rest they are similar and genetically compatible. Selectors have removed quite frost-resistant grades hybrids which are successfully grown up in midland in the open ground. Azaleas differ from each other:
- form of leaves;
- for foliage lives - with biennial cycle, evergreen and deciduous;
- height of bushes;
- types of inflorescences;
- coloring of lobes;
- size of buds.
Competently selecting different plants, it is possible to create beautiful multilevel and multi-colored beds.
Among winter-hardy grades of azaleas which are popular in midland - Tunisia, "Golden Layts", "Ostrich", Klondike, Gibraltar, Frey, Chanel, "Rousey the Light", "Orchid Layts". On the seasonal dacha successfully take root and many species of the Japanese azaleas (Azalea japonica), especially deciduous blossom. So-called Indian grades (Azalea indica) use as house plants more often.
How to choose azalea for garden
Usually in flower shops sale of the azaleas suitable for disembarkation to the open ground is made on spring. Houseplants, like the Indian grades, can be met on counters during any season. At the same time azaleas for the house differ in the dismissed buds and large foliage even with height of stalks no more than 10-15 cm.
Upon purchase of azalea garden it is necessary to make sure that:
- the bush does not exceed 25 cm;
- floral kidneys are hardly noticeable;
- it is a little foliage on plant;
- the spring sapling costs in large container with damp soil.
If carefully to pull qualitative sapling of azalea for small stalk, it will remain in the soil. When the plant without effort leaves pot together with earth lump, you should not take it – most likely, survival will be low.
Optimal conditions for garden azalea
If conditions in garden allow, it is possible to plant safely azalea in the spring to the open ground. It is important to consider what ekzot has fibrillose root system which grows in breadth close to the earth. Therefore it is impossible to plant azalea near willow, maple and other trees with similar roots, otherwise all will lack nutrients. As a last resort, flower growers put film in soil – it allows to keep the field of replenishment of azalea power supply and water in isolation.
The half-shade of larch, oak, bushes which roots go to depth will be the optimum place for the ekzot. Before planting plant, it is necessary to make space from pristvolny circle. It is necessary to remember that the azalea suffers from direct beams of the sun. The site for placement of beds has to be equal, protected from drafts and flooding.
Here prior to the beginning of spring sokodvizheniye it is necessary to dig pole not more deeply than half a meter and on bottom to put haydite, to cover sandy layer. To mix the soil from hole with sand, peat and humus and to form the small hill in the center of seat. On it to distribute roots of azalea and to fill up with residue of the prepared soil so that over earth surface there was root neck.
It was necessary to stamp a little the earth around azalea and to humidify and when it settles, to add still soil and to put five-centimetric layer of mulch – the cut straw, peat, needles, oak foliage. When mulching the neck of bush has to remain open.
The basic rules of care for azalea in garden
- The azalea perfectly feels in the open ground at temperature +20-25ºС. Winter-hardy ekzota maintain cold winters, but till fall it is recommended to warm nevertheless their root system mulch.
- The azalea needs to be watered with rain or otstoyanny water as soon as the upper part of the earth on bed begins to dry up. It is worth carrying out spraying of bush to heat (provided that the plant does not blossom) by heated-up water – it will help to save ekzot from diseases and to support beauty of inflorescences.
- The azalea loves the sour soil therefore monthly it is worth watering it with small amount of citric acid. It is necessary to reduce the number of waterings in the fall.
- It is necessary to cut off sick and dry sprouts of azalea in the spring. Cutting will help diffused light to take place in krone depth, will recover bush.
- In the early spring the soil around azalea can be fertilized humus. When buds are tied, to feed up plant complex mineral fertilizer with phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium. The bush has faded - phosphorus and potassium in the ratio 1:2.
If to meet optimal conditions of cultivation of the ekzot, the long-term bush will blossom during third or fourth lives and will be long pleasing to the eye in refined flowers.