Azalea buds out from old wood?

Matte91

Shohin
Messages
271
Reaction score
321
Location
Denmark
USDA Zone
8a
Hello everyone.

I have had couple of Japanese Azalea (Rhododendron japonicum) for one year now.

Can anyone tell me if they sprout buds from old wood, if they are pruned hard after the flowers fall off?

Thank you!
 

Attachments

  • 2020-05-06 10.54.20.jpg
    2020-05-06 10.54.20.jpg
    119.1 KB · Views: 175

Brian Van Fleet

Pretty Fly for a Bonsai Guy
Messages
13,959
Reaction score
45,884
Location
B’ham, AL
USDA Zone
8A
Yes, but that plant doesn’t have any old wood yet!
 

Matte91

Shohin
Messages
271
Reaction score
321
Location
Denmark
USDA Zone
8a
Yes, but that plant doesn’t have any old wood yet!
You're right. Let me put my question in another way:
Will the tree form new buds if I prune all the leaves off as showed on the picture?
 

Attachments

  • 2020-05-06 12.28.31.jpg
    2020-05-06 12.28.31.jpg
    70.8 KB · Views: 161
Last edited:

Shibui

Imperial Masterpiece
Messages
7,545
Reaction score
15,206
Location
Yackandandah, Australia
USDA Zone
9?
If you prune all the leaves off as shown in that picture chances are that those shoots will just grow longer rather than back budding. Pruning the shoots - removing terminal buds - will cause buds on bare wood.
If you prune at the red line in the first picture you should get lots of new buds all over the remaining branches and trunk. Azaleas are very good at back buds.
 

Harunobu

Chumono
Messages
793
Reaction score
977
Location
Netherlands
USDA Zone
7b
Yes, but if you prune as in the picture you will just get 1 to 3 new shoots growing from your current four branches. Also looks like you have two plants in the same pot.
 

Matte91

Shohin
Messages
271
Reaction score
321
Location
Denmark
USDA Zone
8a
Yes, but if you prune as in the picture you will just get 1 to 3 new shoots growing from your current four branches. Also looks like you have two plants in the same pot.
My picture was just an example. I'm going to prune it even harder than the example I think.
Yes it's two plants in the same pot. I haven't decided whether I should split up the plants, make some kind of twin trunk or what I should do.
I got one more of them in another color and I just bought them to learn about the species etc. I don't expect much of them. They cost me 5 dollars each and for that price they are good learning material :)
 

Attachments

  • 20200505_193102.jpg
    20200505_193102.jpg
    146.5 KB · Views: 75

Leo in N E Illinois

The Professor
Messages
11,337
Reaction score
23,251
Location
on the IL-WI border, a mile from ''da Lake''
USDA Zone
5b
Yes, if pruned after flowering, to bare twigs, leafless, they will back bud, and back bud in many areas.

Do prune the growing ends of all the twigs, if you leave any apical bud (growing ends) the apical bud will monopolize the tree's resources and the other branches will be sparse in back budding. So "prune 'em all". You can leave leaves, but do cut all the growing tips of all the branches. Then you will get a nice full flush of back buds.
 

Shibui

Imperial Masterpiece
Messages
7,545
Reaction score
15,206
Location
Yackandandah, Australia
USDA Zone
9?
2 plants close together is not a twin trunk. Need to be able to see the join in twin trunk, otherwise it is just 2 trees.
It is unusual to have 2 in the same pot. Maybe it was originally a plant with 2 trunks that was potted deep. By now both trunks will have lots of roots so it's probably not viable to rescue the twin but it will be easy to split into 2 separate plants. You will only know when you unpot and have a look at what's under the soil.
Azalea have no problems with cutting lots of roots so no problem to repot or separate these, even if they are connected.
 

Lazylightningny

Masterpiece
Messages
2,257
Reaction score
2,104
Location
Downstate New York, Zone 6b
USDA Zone
6b
Yes, if pruned after flowering, to bare twigs, leafless, they will back bud, and back bud in many areas.
Leo, I always hard prune my azaleas back like the picture I posted above in late winter, before any flowering. That works in lower NY at least.
 

Lazylightningny

Masterpiece
Messages
2,257
Reaction score
2,104
Location
Downstate New York, Zone 6b
USDA Zone
6b
@OP, I let it grow freely (no pruning) for the first year to regain strength. Then this late winter I cut back hard again to begin ramification. I'm just starting to see some tiny green buds peeking out from last year's leaf scars. I feel like I left them a little too long this year but I can always cut back more later.

Azaleas like to grow in whorls, so make sure to prune to just 2 bifurcations all along the branches. Seal the wounds.

Anyway, best of luck!

20200404_110915.jpg
 

Matte91

Shohin
Messages
271
Reaction score
321
Location
Denmark
USDA Zone
8a
2 plants close together is not a twin trunk. Need to be able to see the join in twin trunk, otherwise it is just 2 trees.
It is unusual to have 2 in the same pot. Maybe it was originally a plant with 2 trunks that was potted deep. By now both trunks will have lots of roots so it's probably not viable to rescue the twin but it will be easy to split into 2 separate plants. You will only know when you unpot and have a look at what's under the soil.
Azalea have no problems with cutting lots of roots so no problem to repot or separate these, even if they are connected.
I know that 2 plants close together isn't a twin trunk. But as I said i don't know what direction I should take yet. It's a learning material, I don't take this tree so serious. It won't probably ever become a bonsai. I just use the tree to learn how to take care of Azalea, how to prune etc.
I decide what direction I should take with the tree when I repot it. Thank you.
 

Matte91

Shohin
Messages
271
Reaction score
321
Location
Denmark
USDA Zone
8a
Yes, if pruned after flowering, to bare twigs, leafless, they will back bud, and back bud in many areas.

Do prune the growing ends of all the twigs, if you leave any apical bud (growing ends) the apical bud will monopolize the tree's resources and the other branches will be sparse in back budding. So "prune 'em all". You can leave leaves, but do cut all the growing tips of all the branches. Then you will get a nice full flush of back buds.
Perfect! Thank you very much for a good advice and explanation. Especially about prune all the growing ends👍
 

Matte91

Shohin
Messages
271
Reaction score
321
Location
Denmark
USDA Zone
8a
@OP, I let it grow freely (no pruning) for the first year to regain strength. Then this late winter I cut back hard again to begin ramification. I'm just starting to see some tiny green buds peeking out from last year's leaf scars. I feel like I left them a little too long this year but I can always cut back more later.

Azaleas like to grow in whorls, so make sure to prune to just 2 bifurcations all along the branches. Seal the wounds.

Anyway, best of luck!

View attachment 301244
Now I'm confused whether I should prune after the flowers fall or in winter. Everyone say they prune them after flowers fall. Why do you prune in winter? Thank you.
 

Harunobu

Chumono
Messages
793
Reaction score
977
Location
Netherlands
USDA Zone
7b
You prune when you expect the strongest growth. If you prune in winter, it won't grow because it is dormant. Yes, it will start growing again in spring. But if you grow as it about to start flowering then it will start growing right away, as the plant has left dormancy. And it will have the entire growth season to do so.

If you are in climates with longer growing seasons, it may be worthwhile to prune after it gained from it's first growing phase. So then after flowering.
 

Adair M

Pinus Envy
Messages
14,402
Reaction score
34,873
Location
NEGeorgia
USDA Zone
7a
What kind of azalea are these? It matters.

Satsuki azalea griw foliage, then pause growing, bloom, the resume growing.

other azalea bloom first, then grow.

both types will stop growing when they put on flower buds.You can get them to put on another growth spurt if you cut off the flower buds.
 

Harunobu

Chumono
Messages
793
Reaction score
977
Location
Netherlands
USDA Zone
7b
I don't think it matters if they are satsuki or not. If you prune them, you prune off the flowers or flower buds anyway. Whether it is about to flower, or in 3 weeks doesn't matter. And if it is done flowering, the same.

I also don't agree that satsuki don't grow during flowering. The new shoots definitely keep extending once the flowers open. I do agree if you say that kurume azaleas start growing earlier if you remove their flower buds. But only on that specific branch.
 

Matte91

Shohin
Messages
271
Reaction score
321
Location
Denmark
USDA Zone
8a
The species is a Japanese Azalea (Rhododendron japonicum).
My plan was to prune hard and I wan't as much new growth as possible.
 

Harunobu

Chumono
Messages
793
Reaction score
977
Location
Netherlands
USDA Zone
7b
Yours would fall under kurume, not satsuki. (Though Japanese Azalea/Rhododendron japonicum refers to any evergreen azalea.) From the picture, this could be a Rhododendron mucronatum type like 'Everest' or 'Mary Helen'. So it wouldn't be a kurume either. If your label has a cultivar name, I could give more info. But it doesn't change what you would be doing, imo.

You could do it now. You likely want to split the two plants as well. But your pot will be entirely filled with a single solid mass of roots. The only way to separate is to sow the root ball in half. You could consider doing the separation this year. And then only prune what is needed to avoid increase in reverse taper. Then let it grow and prune it back to nothing next year mid April. Normally, you would sow off the bottom 2/3rds of the root ball and rake it open as much as possible. The top as well, to free up more of the trunk. As half the roots will be in the half you cut off for either plant, remove less from the bottom. I'd put it in 50/50 peat/kanuma.
 
Top Bottom