How to Prune Azaleas (yes, really!)

Показать описание

I generally recommend leaving shrubs and trees alone as much as possible, to let them do their natural thing. However, if they start looking leggy, have dead branches or limbs, or block windows or paths, it’s time for a pruning.

In this case, there were a few azaleas that had gotten especially leggy and they didn’t look full and healthy. What this means is that the branches were long but without many leaves on them, with flowers only at the ends. There were also a bunch of dead branches, and a bunch of clutter at the bottom.

So I worked with this client to clean it up. We cut the branches back to the origin of the branch. We removed dead ones, ones that were growing downward or in directions we didn’t want, and we left the growth we wanted to keep going. Tools we used: hand pruners and loppers. Don’t use electric hedge trimmers or sheers if you want the most flowers from your shrubs.

There may not be flowers in these in the spring—sometimes you need to sacrifice a season of blooms in service of the future in order for the plants to be able to fill out and be more healthy.

These pruning principles apply to many other shrubs—particularly rhododendrons. I didn’t expect to take as much off of this initially but sometimes once you get in there you just have to go for it.

I'll post a follow-up next summer after there has been some growth so come back for that.

My goal is to empower as many people as possible to get out there and get their hands dirty. Subscribe to my channel to follow along with my clients and my own continuing gardening journey. Please share this video and hopefully that will result in more empowered gardeners, so thank you!🌺

#azalea #pruning #rhododendron #gardencoach #gardening #gardener #beginnergardener #gardening101 #youcandoitgardening #gardeningtips #gardeningtipsforbeginners #diylandscaping #gardentok #pruningtips #loppers