Miss Marple Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 Any azalea bush experts out there? If more branches are dead than living, is it worth trying to save the bush? These are an evergreen variety and I don't know why the branches have died. The leaves just turned brown and eventually the branches died. It could have been due to the number of moles we've had in the gardens, I guess. It seems like it would be easier to just pull them all out and start over :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueridge Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 Poor bush. So many potential problems with it. Have you looked for insects? Kept it watered and fed? Only pruned after it has flowered? I would trim only branches that I was certain were dead, and also consider carefully digging it up with a large root ball and relocating to a less mole-infested location. :D Fertilize with acid loving plant food. I'm sure your azalea would love you for trying to save him. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Marple Posted August 30, 2012 Author Share Posted August 30, 2012 Poor bush. So many potential problems with it. Have you looked for insects? Kept it watered and fed? Only pruned after it has flowered? I would trim only branches that I was certain were dead, and also consider carefully digging it up with a large root ball and relocating to a less mole-infested location. :D Fertilize with acid loving plant food. I'm sure your azalea would love you for trying to save him. :001_smile: We have had a horribly hot, dry summer. I have tried to keep them watered and fed, but the heat has been intolerable for many of the plants - even in the shade. I cannot see any insects, but a couple of years ago I had a problem with...oh, I can't remember what it was called...but it started on the back side of the leaves and were little brown spots. The leaves died, but the plants survived (I sprayed that year and the next). I had a deciduous azalea in the same bed die suddenly last year and one of the evergreen plants (on the end of the row) completely died as well (I pulled that out this spring when it didn't begin to bud). I have 4 plants left - one really only has one large branch left that isn't dead, but the others are a bit better. The azaleas in the other bed (separated by a wide walkway) are doing fine. They had the disease the others had a couple of years ago, but recovered well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan C. Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 (edited) My gardening experts (dh and ds) say heat, drought, clay soil would kill them. When we lived in Texas, you had to dig out the clay, and replace with peat for them to do well. Dh says if you are near Tulsa, then there is better soil, less clay. You could cut them back and see if they come back, or replace if they are small, but if you don't find out why they died, the new ones will die too. Proper care for azaleas is 1) you can't keep them soggy, they need good drainage 2) but they do need water 3) ph has to be low (acidic) There are a lot of azaleas here, and they looked bad during the drought, but most of them came back. ADDING: just read your second post, dh says try spraying a fungicide on them Edited August 30, 2012 by Susan C. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down_the_Rabbit_Hole Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 Cut them back and put used coffee grounds near the base of the plant. These are hardy things and should come back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Marple Posted August 30, 2012 Author Share Posted August 30, 2012 These are in raised beds and we added loads of peat so I think the drainage is fine. Haven't checked the pH...I'll try that and I have some fungicide on hand. I'll trim the dead out and see what's left :) Thanks, Susan and Blueridge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Marple Posted August 30, 2012 Author Share Posted August 30, 2012 Cut them back and put used coffee grounds near the base of the plant. These are hardy things and should come back. Oh, I've got lots of coffee grounds! I can do that :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueridge Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 Oh, I've got lots of coffee grounds! I can do that :D But moles LOVE coffee...I can't imagine how hyper they will get, all caffeinated up! :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan C. Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 Gummy bears in the mole holes!!! They can't digest it....so they mysteriously disappear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Marple Posted August 30, 2012 Author Share Posted August 30, 2012 LOL! I cannot imagine what caffeinated mole would be like HA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Marple Posted August 30, 2012 Author Share Posted August 30, 2012 Update: I was outside trimming out the dead branches and I tugged on one a little too hard. The whole plant came up! The roots aren't more than 2 inches! It looks like something is killing them from the roots...is that possible? These bushes are about 5 ft in diameter and about 3-4 ft tall (depending on the branch). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueridge Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 Root rot, perhaps...here is a page that details the symptoms, if you wanted to compare. Sorry for your plant, and you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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