hi there,
my rhody developed a fungus infection(i think)i went to home depot and there
they told me i should spray some oil spray on it. i sprayed it, and i think
that the infection has stopped. i wanted to trim my plant, as it has only
three to four buds that i think will bloom this season, please could someone
tell me when is the best time to trim it.
thank you,
sabaa.

The best time to prune rhodys is right after or during blooming. When mine
get too big I take whole branches instead of just trimming back branches.
Any pruning you do will result in fewer blossoms the following spring.


"Sabaa Mundia" wrote in message
...
hi there,
my rhody developed a fungus infection(i think)i went to home depot and
there
they told me i should spray some oil spray on it. i sprayed it, and i
think
that the infection has stopped. i wanted to trim my plant, as it has only
three to four buds that i think will bloom this season, please could
someone
tell me when is the best time to trim it.
thank you,
sabaa.

They need pruning because even we gardeners don't always use our heads
when planting and put something in the wrong place. Or the plant grows
bigger than planed. Which is what happened with my rhody, it wants to grow
into a tree in a small flowerbed, rather than trying to replace it I prune.

If you are doing every thing right, rhodies don't need pruning, ever.



"KPDOBES" wrote in message
...
Why do they need pruned? At what size do you prune them back? Thanks,
MB

"Sabaa Mundia" wrote:
my rhody developed a fungus infection(i think)i went to home depot and there
they told me i should spray some oil spray on it. i sprayed it, and i think
that the infection has stopped. i wanted to trim my plant, as it has only
three to four buds that i think will bloom this season, please could someone
tell me when is the best time to trim it.

For maximum flower production, pinch off faded flowers or the
developing seed capsules that follow [deadheading]. Pruning is seldom
needed except for removal of faded flowers, but if it is needed,
branches may be trimmed immediately after flowering. Prune in the
spring after the bloom has faded and before mid-summer. Rhododendrons
start to form the next years flower buds in mid summer and by fall the
buds are fairly well developed. Pruning after mid summer removes the
next years flower buds. Rhododendron and azaleas may be pruned after
the flowers have faded to induce new growth. Prune out dead, diseased
or damaged branches, and in cases where plants have become scraggly,
start cutting the oldest branches back to encourage growth in younger
branches. Pruning in the fall is not recommended since it will remove
the buds for next years flowers.

Most successful rhododendron gardeners do not deadhead. It is not
because they don't believe in it or that they don't want to do it, but
rather because they have so many plants and so many other more
important tasks that they don't have time to do it. Does this cause a
problem? Not really. Some plants that are reluctant to bloom or have
disease problems such as petal blight or in an area that is marginal
for the plant in question may benefit from deadheading, but that is
unusual.

A friend of mine has the most beautiful rhododendron and azalea
garden. All plants are about waist height. From any place in the
garden you can see just about every plant. During the flowering season
it is awesome. I asked him how he keeps the plants so well kept and
his reply was that he just removes the top foliage buds each year with
his fingers in the late fall or early spring. This can be done by
carefully breaking the buds off [pinching]. No pruning at all. This
technique minimizes disease and insect damage. It works very well for
him. It is labor intensive, but well worth the effort.

If necessary, you can remove a great deal of material. It is a general
rule to not remove over 1/3 of the leaf area each year. Pruning is
generally used to control unsatisfactory height or width of a plant. I
don't prune very often and try to limit pruning to plants which have a
shape that is unsatisfactory or dead branches. If I want to cut
trusses for bouquets, I always cut the tallest flowers since this
helps keep the plant within bounds.

Severe pruning is not uncommon with rhododendron and azaleas. A
healthy plant can be cut to the ground and will usually come back.
Rhododendron and azaleas have dormant buds beneath the bark which
sprout to form new growth after severe pruning. After pruning,
spraying with a fungicide may prevent infection.

Visit my Rhododendron and Azalea web pages at:
http://www.users.fast.net/~shenning/rhody.html
Also visit the Rhododendron and Azalea Bookstore at:
http://members.aol.com/rhodyman/rhodybooks.html

Cheers, Steve Henning in Reading, PA USA