Home |
Search |
Today's Posts |
|
#1
|
|||
|
|||
rhododendron......
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. |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
rhododendron......
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. |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
rhododendron......
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 |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
rhododendron......
"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 |
Reply |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Forum | |||
Rhododendron | Gardening | |||
rhododendron problem | Gardening | |||
Rhododendron question | Australia | |||
Pests in Verbena and Rhododendron | United Kingdom | |||
rhododendron litangense questions from Oregon | Bonsai |