How to Make an Azalea Bonsai Bloom

Check the Soil pH Level

• 1

  Remove a small quantity of soil from the azalea's pot using a clean spoon or trowel.

• 2

  Put some water on the soil sample and touch a piece of pH paper-- usually available at garden centers --.to the moistened area. Match the color that forms to the pH chart.

• 3

  Adjust the soil pH if it is higher than 4.0 to 5.5.by changing the potting mix. Add peat moss to the mix you're using to adjust the acidity.

• 4

  Test the soil mix with the pH paper after each addition of peat until the soil is between 4.0 to 5.5 in pH. Take the plant out of its pot. Remove the old soil and use the more acidic mix.

• 5

  Add ferrous sulphate after repotting to maintain proper pH in the amount recommended on the product package. Alternatively, use soil acidifying treatments such as Scott's Miracle Gro Azalea, Camellia, and Rhododendron Plant Food or Miracid. Use them every week or two to keep the soil acid.

Encourage Presence of Mycorrhizae

• 6

  Purchase organic humus or use your own organic compost. Add to soil when repotting plants or dig some into the soil regularly.

• 7

  Cover the top of the soil with an organic mulch.

• 8

  Take out 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the old soil when repotting an azalea, depending on the size of the bonsai pot. Add this soil to the new mix used in replanting it.

• 9

  Purchase a commercial mycorrhizal product available at many garden centers. Add it to the soil in the bonsai pot as well as to your stored potting mix per package directions.

Proper Moisture and Humidity

• 10

  Give plants moisture during critical flower bud-formation periods, generally a few months after the plant last bloomed or should have bloomed.

• 11

  Test the soil moisture every few days with your finger. Withhold water if the plant is waterlogged. Add water if the soil is dry a half inch down. Aim for evenly moist soil..

• 12

  Place your bonsai away from direct sunlight or heating vents, which can lower the humidity and dry out and kill the forming flower buds.

Fertilization

• 13

  Stop fertilizing in late summer or fall after the buds for next spring have set.

• 14

  Begin fertilizing after the flowers have finished blooming.

• 15

  Don't apply fertilizers high in nitrogen, which can prevent flower bud formation at the expense of vegetative growth.

• 16

  Put organic rather than inorganic fertilizers on your azalea.

Pruning

• 17

  Don't prune after bud set in late summer and fall, since next year's flowers are on the new growth.

• 18

  Remove flowers as soon as they start to fade, making more energy available for next spring's flowers. Use small, clean, sharp pruning shears. Remove old blooms by cutting the short stalk under the flower.

• 19

  Remove new shoots that can develop at the base of flowers in the spring, since allowing shoots to develop can cause bud drop. Use sharp small clean pruning shears and cut at a 45-degree angle.

Light and Temperature

• 20

  Put your azalea bonsai in partial shade. Avoid dense shade or direct sunlight, both of which prevent good flower bud formation.

• 21

  Put your azalea in a cool place (ideally, from 35 degrees to 55 degrees Fahrenheit) protected from freezing from fall through winter to ensure bud set and proper bloom time.

• 22

  Put the bonsai where it is not exposed to winter winds, which can increase the chill factor and damage developing flower buds.