Is it hard to get azaleas through the summer? Solve 2 problems and they will bloom in a brilliant red, bursting with flowers

Today is the first day of the dog days of summer, the sun is blazing hot. Gardeners in furnace-like regions, are your flowers doing okay? When it comes to azaleas, although they bloom in a brilliant red, they are also called the "summer hardship case" by gardeners. This summer, how can we keep azaleas alive? To get azaleas safely through the summer, we first have to solve these 2 problems.

1. Do they really need more water in summer?

Azaleas like a moist environment. With high summer temperatures, water evaporates quickly, so watering in time is very important, otherwise azaleas can easily dry out and die. We have to make sure the potting soil has enough moisture, but we should not water too frequently either. Understanding whether the potting soil is dry or wet is very important. If you are a beginner, you can use a flower and plant moisture meter, stick it into the soil, and you can accurately know the soil's water content. Water when it is lacking, and then you do not have to worry about the azalea drying out and dying.

In addition, we also need to maintain high air humidity. You can spray water on the ground around the plant, lay down wet grass, and mist the leaf surface. This can raise humidity and also lower the temperature. If the soil is breathable, we can also use the sitting-pot method, but if the bottom of the pot is in contact with water for a long time and the soil is not breathable, it is also easy to suffocate the roots, so it is recommended to place a brick underneath to separate the water from the bottom of the pot.

a Once the temperature and humidity are generally controlled well, azaleas will not go dormant and will continue to grow. Some gardeners maintain normal water and fertilizer management, and the azaleas will grow very vigorously. But when using fertilizer in summer, it should still be mainly light. We can use an acidic organic nutrient solution, with no added hormones, diluted 1500 times, and use it once every 15 days. It does not harm the roots and can let the root system grow more and become stronger, so the azalea can still grow robustly in summer, with glossy green leaves.

For gardeners who are not confident, just wait until late September, when the weather gradually turns cooler, before using fertilizer. At this time the azalea has entered autumn growth, and you should use a liquid fertilizer containing phosphorus to promote flower bud growth. You can use a flowering-type organic nutrient solution, high in phosphorus and potassium, once every 10 days, to let more flower buds grow, so the azalea blooms all over the branches in brilliant red. After October, autumn growth has basically stopped, so there is no need to fertilize anymore.

2. Do azaleas actually need shading to get through the summer?

Generally, once the temperature exceeds 30°C, gardeners who have the conditions can pull up a shade net. Shading out 60%-70% of the light is best. Different types of azaleas have slightly different degrees of sun tolerance. For example, Mao azaleas and summer azaleas are relatively sun-tolerant, while Western azaleas are not, so Western azaleas are best shaded.

Of course, environments differ from place to place, and whether to shade or not cannot be generalized. Some gardeners say healthy azaleas do not need shading, but that is for places with both high temperature and high humidity. Places with high temperature and low humidity are not advised to do this. If you are a gardener with a lot of experience, and you strengthen management, azaleas can also get through the summer safely. For beginners, it is still best to do whatever is safest.

Have you all learned these little tips for getting azaleas through the summer? Solve these 2 problems, and azaleas will get through the summer with no pressure, and can also bloom in brilliant red.