B.Server wrote in message
...
| On Thu, 27 Mar 2003 23:10:06 GMT, "L & S"
| wrote:
|
| I had been led to believe that azaleas do not do well in Austin.
Yesterday
| I was at the Zilker Botanical Garden, and they are abloom
EVERYWHERE!
| Absolutely stunning! Are there special steps that must be taken to
ensure
| their success - or am I wrong about azaleas and Austin? Thanks
for any
| advice you can offer. Sarah (who is suffering greatly from azalea
envy!)
|
|
| You were led correctly. However, with a decent budget for removing
| Austin's native soil and replacing it with E. Texas or some other
| humis-filled, low pH, mixture, a full time staff to prune, water
year
| 'round, and keep the soil from reverting to local type, you too can
| have beautiful azealeas in Austin.
|
| Years back, there were absolutely glorious azealas along many of the
| older streets in Austin, Enfield Road west of Lamar being a prime
| example. 95% of them are gone. The older trees that gave them
| shelter from the direct sun were not kept up, not replaced, or
chopped
| to pieces by the city in the name of progress. Many of the homes
were
| too large to be kept up and turned into spot-zoned cracker-box
| apartments. Azealas need water through the winter. Often more than
| we get by rainfall, so they have to be watered. As our water and
| wastewater rates have zoomed, it became a burden to be watering year
| 'round, particularly when it influenced your wastewater rates for
the
| year.
|
| Take a drive to E. Texas to see them in something closer to a
natural
| state.

There are still a few places where they're to be seen in glory in West
Austin, but where they thrive, it's because there's time or paid staff
and lots of money invested. Last I knew, Sledd's was still stocking
varieties liked by the West Austin old ladies.