Big Azaleas I picked up today

Shorty54 · Apr 19, 2015

Well, on Saturday my family traveled to the Mobile Flea Market. We found quite a few stands selling nice sized Azaleas. One in particular....well we went back right before closing and he was gone, but his flowers were still there. So, Sunday morning my buddy calls me and says he wants to go back. So we load up and go. Get there and all of the guys trees are gone except for 5 big azaleas. The guy on the booth next to his says he left them & he wants $5 each. Sold....I got one red & one purple! I took buds off and tries to trim most of the dead stuff. But, I see some promise!

Mellow Mullet · Apr 20, 2015

Cool, that Flea Market is only about four miles from my house. Those are nice. I buy from him all the time, I fact, the club I am in, The Azalea City Bonsai Society, went out to his nursery yesterday and picked some up. Oh, his name is Tim Huggins.

John

Giga · Apr 20, 2015

nice score-some of those look like nice bases-after the flowers start to fade you can hard prune it down to those base and see what you have!

augustine · Apr 20, 2015

Drastic pruning is needed. John Gean-Angel has some good videos on you tube about training nursery azaleas, just like these. Check it out.

GrimLore · Apr 20, 2015

This is what he is referring to. I just chopped this one a few days back -

Grimmy

GrimLore · Apr 20, 2015

And this one -

Grimmy

Shorty54 · Apr 20, 2015

Mellow Mullet said:
Cool, that Flea Market is only about four miles from my house. Those are nice. I buy from him all the time, I fact, the club I am in, The Azalea City Bonsai Society, went out to his nursery yesterday and picked some up. Oh, his name is Tim Huggins.

John

Yeah, I knew y'all were getting together and that's why he was gone. I text Barry to try and get in touch with him. He had a few smaller Azaleas we wanted to get. My wife wants to try and Bonsai a little and there was a nice little purple one she really liked!

Shorty54 · Apr 20, 2015

GrimLore,

Is it safe to trim mine down that much? Top & roots?

barrosinc · Apr 20, 2015

Shorty54: check these out https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAm05iqaJR1M1rEhmaUwK1Zp9sOs82U0q

look how ruthless he is with azaleas like these.

a walkthrough.

GrimLore · Apr 20, 2015

Shorty54 said:
GrimLore,

Is it safe to trim mine down that much? Top & roots?

Honest those two got pulled out and chopped while just coming out of dormancy here and our climate is quite different. In general they can be worked hard once established but I can only speak from experience HERE. On the bright side you could quote this thread in a PM to johng who could give you an "expert" opinion. I am pretty certain he will say it is ok but I would not rely on just my opinion. Also I am pretty certain mine were much older and I am not certain if that is of any concern.

Grimmy

Shorty54 · Apr 22, 2015

Drastic Trim....

And I had a spare pot....so, why not?

GrimLore · Apr 23, 2015

Next year you will be cutting more of it off

You will know why in about 2 months for certain, good start though! Now just keep it damp and all should go well

Grimmy

Paradox · Apr 23, 2015

I didnt realize we could chop these now. Everything Ive read says after flowering. Might have to work on a couple myself.

GrimLore · Apr 23, 2015

Paradox said:
I didnt realize we could chop these now. Everything Ive read says after flowering. Might have to work on a couple myself.

I did the collecting and cuts in posts #5 and #6 on April 12th just as the two were showing signs of waking up. They are in those 16 1/2 inch wide trainers now and I see no reason they won't do well. Not certain if they will recover AND bloom this year but certain they will bloom next year as our growing season is short.

Grimmy

Paradox · Apr 23, 2015

Im not so much worried about flowers at this point, just want to start working on their shape. Flowers will come later (next year, etc).

Shorty54 · Apr 23, 2015

Paradox said:
I didnt realize we could chop these now. Everything Ive read says after flowering. Might have to work on a couple myself.

It had already flowered.

Leo in N E Illinois · Apr 30, 2015

The "prune after flowering" adage for timing of chopping/pruning is only because many people actually raise azaleas to enjoy the flowers, nothing to do with plant health. If you don't mind not seeing the flowers, chop early spring just as new leaf buds start to grow, it may even be a bit healthier for the plant to chop earlier, rather than after flowering. Azaleas are pretty hardy, they will survive less than ideal timing of pruning.

edprocoat · May 1, 2015

I bought an azalea in Florida back around the end of February, it was in a 3 gallon pot with a twin trunk about 2 ft. tall with a mass of pink blooms. The trunks were less than an inch diameter. After the blooms faded I took it out of the pot and it had a mess of thick intertwined roots. I thought it was useless so I cut off about 4/5's the root mass with a saw and then cut off the three most ugly surface roots. It had some low buds so I chopped the trunks down to 2 inchs tall and put it in some red lava and composted pine bark and put it straight into a Bonsai pot. It leafed out with dozens of buds all around the trunks, so much so that its nearly all leaves no trunk now. I am just going to let it grow and recover from the frost we had a week ago here in Ohio which discolored a dozen or so leaves but did not seem to do much damage. I had no room in my heated box for this one so I left it on the top of the box hoping the heat might rise through the wood and ward of the cold. I wish I had just covered it.

ed

GrimLore · May 2, 2015

edprocoat said:
I am just going to let it grow and recover from the frost we had a week ago here in Ohio which discolored a dozen or so leaves but did not seem to do much damage.

Mine stay out all Winter uncovered(many times under the snow) and the leafs often turn, brown, purple, and look quite bad in the Spring. Very few drop and they all Green up again

I doubt you hurt yours at all honest

Grimmy

Shorty54 · May 19, 2015

Well, I got back from New York on Monday & today I see this! Figured I'd share!!!!

Big Azaleas I picked up today

Mame

Masterpiece

Masterpiece

Chumono

Bonsai Nut alumnus... we miss you

Attachments

Bonsai Nut alumnus... we miss you

Attachments

Mame

Mame

Masterpiece

Bonsai Nut alumnus... we miss you

Mame

Attachments

Bonsai Nut alumnus... we miss you

Imperial Masterpiece

Bonsai Nut alumnus... we miss you

Imperial Masterpiece

Mame

The Professor

Masterpiece

Bonsai Nut alumnus... we miss you

Mame

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