Nursery & Azaleas

Nursery

• Azaleas in a nursery setting usually exist in a 6-inch planting container. Because these azaleas are root-bound, you must bare-root them after removing them from their containers and before planting them in the ground. Simply spray the soil away from the roots using a garden hose and spray nozzle. If this does not work well without damaging the delicate roots, cut down three sides of the root balls by 1/2 inch and gently pull the roots apart.

Conditions

• While in a nursery, an azalea plant should be located in an area that offers partial sun or full sun. The soil also should offer good drainage. Otherwise, the baby plant is susceptible to fungal diseases such as those stemming from the fungus Phytophthora. In addition, the soil should be acidic, with a pH level -- or level of acidity and basicity -- of 4 to 5.5.

Planting

• To plant a new azalea plant from a nursery, choose a site in which the soil is rich in organic content such as sphagnum peat moss or compost, and select a location that is not on the hot south side of your house.

  Create a hole in the ground that is large enough to hold the entire azalea seedling, and put a clump of soil in the bottom of the hole. Position this seedling atop this clump, and allow the azalea roots to flow over the soil clump. Return the soil you removed from the hole earlier, back into the hole, and soak the soil with water.

Care

• Placing mulch on the soil covering a newly planted azalea nursery plant helps the plant retain necessary moisture and nutrients. In addition, the mulch protects the plant's roots from extreme outside temperatures. Apply about 4 inches of mulch such as pine needles to the site. Water the nursery azalea regularly so that it remains constantly moist.

  Also, apply an acidic fertilizer to the plant during the spring or summer season. If you wish to replant the azalea the following year, trim off the blooms that have since died and put the plant in a pot featuring potting soil with peat moss. Keep the plant in a sunny indoor location, and put the plant back outside the following spring after your region's last frost has passed.