HELP ! Azalea Problem

BrendanOz

I brought this Azalea from a good Melbourne retailer last week and although it was in need of a feed, l thought it had good structure and age for the price and snapped it up, however last night i noticed the lower main branch is killing over on me. The leaves are dry and im hoping l dont lose this branch can anyone give me some advice. I used half strength liquid fertilizer, was it too much too soon?

Attached Images

azalea upright 1.jpg (45.2 KB, 211 views)

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TreeBay

Well now with your juniper dying back in another thread you have me wondering!

The majority of the problems people have is with watering. Azaleas are intolerant of improper watering - they die if they ever dry out, even once.

If you miss a watering (particularly after you have begun to fertilize) you could get into problems. Ordinarily, with an azalea the low branches are strong. There are a lot of possibilities, including mechanical damage, animals. If the leaves are drying, it is probably gone.

How does the health of the remaining branches compare with their prior condition?

Regards,

Matt

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BrendanOz

The entire tree is in great shape, in terms of leaf flexiblity, they are discoloured but i was told thats coz its in need of a feed.

All my plants get watered the same time of day - but coz this tree was brand new to me, perhaps i should have not given it such a generous watering, but i didnt think it was generous at all, i havent missed a water. It only is confined to this lower branch!

Adam_MA

Maybe it would help if you explained how you are watering your trees, and how often you are watering them.


Adam

D3rutat

Have you checked the roots? It's really strange, i've got my azaleas dried for a day but they never died, only lost a few leaves and usuallly recovered.And i don't think it might be due to overwatering from what i have read in your post. Azaleas like water a lot and root rot can appear only after about a week in wet soil which i don't think it's the case here.Have you used any insecticde, is the soil special for azaleas or not? Can you see any bugs, which i doubt you will as bugs can't kill a tree that easy but you might want to check out. Is it receiving full sun? If it is it might 've gotten leaf burn. Is it warm there??

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BrendanOz

Watering - ive only newly acquired the plant, and i water it after work everyday and give it approximately ummm 5 cups of water as its in a garden pot not a bonsai pot - usually wait until the water exits the drainage holes and then stop.
In Melbourne we have been having unusally hot Autumn conditions this week, perhaps it could be a tad burnt howver i have another azalea i have attached sitting right next to this and this thriving.
Its a complete mystery - im now very suspecious but the retailer but upon buying it the branch was healthy - could i have fertilized too hard - the retailer said its in need of a feed but i was to do it gradually (suppose coz he hadnt fed it for a while) but i watered half strength fertilizer the night afterwards - about a litre - is this the problem

Attached Images

azalea broom 1.jpg (41.0 KB, 146 views)

DavidN

Brendon can I ask who the retailer is?

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BrendanOz

Yep David - i brought the upright azalea from Bonsai Art .

heymikey(deceased)

hey BrendanOZ; One possible problem to consider may be the black plastic container which during the summer can get very hot, specially if it receives any direct sunlight. The high temperature of the plastic is transferred to the adjacent roots, cooking them, plus it causes the root ball to shrink away from the inside of the pot. Subsequent watering runs rapidly right down this 'crack' and does not properly get to the entire rootball. This effect is compounded to even a greater degree if the rootball is dense and contains a lot of peat moss which shrinks alot when dried and doesn't rewet easily. I would recommend watering by submerging in a tub of water to ensure that the entire rootball is properly wetted and then each day checking the center of the rootball with the chopstick method or with a moisture meter probe to determine when it needs to be watered again. Ultimately it needs to be in a better container or as a quick-and-dirty adjustment make the outside of the plastic pot white (paint, contact paper, etc.) until you transplant. On a hot day a black plastic pot can get to over 150 deg F. if it is exposed to the sun's rays and a white one will likely be about the same as the air temp.