Dying Satsuki Azalea!

[Adair M]

Here’s my take on the situation:

looking at the soil, it appears that the tree has a relatively small root system in peat-based soil. That’s the part close to the trunk. That small root ball is in the middle of a larger pot, and the space between the small peat root ball and the walls of the larger pot was filled with a very large grained fast draining soil mix.

Here’s the problem: when you water something like that, the water runs thru the coarse soil very, very quickly, then out the bottom. The peat based soil near the trunk doesn’t get very wet because that takes time for it to absorb water. By the time it just starts to get damp enough to absorb water, all the water has run out the bottom thru the coarse soil! So, even though the plant is getting “watered”, none of that water is getting to the roots, because all the roots are in the peat! And the roots are making the peat dryer and dryer…
In this case, I suggest setting the whole pot in a larger pot of water and let the root ball really soak up some water. If you see air bubbles coming up from the peat portion when you do this, you know this was the problem. Let it soak about 20 minutes, then lift it out and let it drain.

Afterwards, just water as normal, but make sure when you water that the peat portion gets wet, too. Maybe once a week or so do the soaking watering thing.
Good luck!

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

Here’s my take on the situation:

looking at the soil, it appears that the tree has a relatively small root system in peat-based soil. That’s the part close to the trunk. That small root ball is in the middle of a larger pot, and the space between the small peat root ball and the walls of the larger pot was filled with a very large grained fast draining soil mix.

Here’s the problem: when you water something like that, the water runs thru the coarse soil very, very quickly, then out the bottom. The peat based soil near the trunk doesn’t get very wet because that takes time for it to absorb water. By the time it just starts to get damp enough to absorb water, all the water has run out the bottom thru the coarse soil! So, even though the plant is getting “watered”, none of that water is getting to the roots, because all the roots are in the peat! And the roots are making the peat dryer and dryer…
In this case, I suggest setting the whole pot in a larger pot of water and let the root ball really soak up some water. If you see air bubbles coming up from the peat portion when you do this, you know this was the problem. Let it soak about 20 minutes, then lift it out and let it drain.

Afterwards, just water as normal, but make sure when you water that the peat portion gets wet, too. Maybe once a week or so do the soaking watering thing.
Good luck!

@Adair M I’ll buy into this solution indeed if the media is not continuous peat based. it makes sense in that case.

If not continuous, I’ll stick to my guns. Root rot, considering the die off pattern, interior and exterior. Yet these issues look so similar superficially its easy to go one way or the other unless one has been on scene taking care of the azalea.

I’ve seen far too many azaleas and maples out here in the past months with root rot and leaf issues due to super saturated media.

cheers
DSD sends

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

@&$!! I meant if continuous…I’ll stick to my guns!

cheers
DSD sends

 

[pixlweaver]

Oh wow, I missed a bunch of responses! Thank you all for the help, I really appreciate it! I'm beginning to lean towards the idea that it is overwatered, because it's looking worse now after a few days of extra water. I skipped watering it yesterday and checked it this morning, the soil is still moist. Even after 100 degree weather. It has been in shade this week.

I'm very certain I killed off a rose I planted this spring as well due to overwatering. My husband likes to tease me that I have a black thumb instead of a green one

 

[pixlweaver]

Sure feels an awful lot like root rot to me folks. Brown root tips can be either root rot from over watering , fertilizer burn, underwatering and frost. It ain’t frost. It doesn’t look like underwatering to me. The inner parts of the leaves are too healthy,

imho overwatering seems the very most likely. OP said she watered everyday in a peat based media. That’s just an inevitable outcome on a nursery tree that is packed densely with roots.

The tree looks just like a couple of my azaleas after the extended cold wet spring we had here… torrential downpours coupled with rainy days. Root rot crept in.

Here’s what that looked like on a small azalea that had been repotted 4 weeks before. The tree went back in a greenhouse to dry it out and responded well. This tree dropped these leaves eventually, while H2O2 applications brought it back, and new foliage kicked in, but it remains to be very weak a month later, wilting easily in the heat due to really weak roots.

View attachment 444244&

But…Haven’t heard about fertilization yet. Could be possible, yet somehow I doubt this as the tree was watered so much.

@pixlweaver Wondering…have you fertilized the azalea multiple times…? If so what type of fertilizer did you use.

In the mean time @Bonsai Nut has some good ideas along the line to help…

Here’s what I’d recommend.
- Take the azalea out of the sun, find a cool dappled shady spot or medium shade.
- Keep from getting hot (90F). Cooler the better.
- Stop watering until the root ball becomes moist, not wet. Chock up one side of the pot to encourage this.
- Once soil does get dried out think moisten soil, not wet the soil clear through…. Please find a new home for the humidity tray.
- In the interim, Mist the leaves and soil a couple times a day, using 2 TBSP 3% H2O2 / Qt.

cheers
DSD sends

I think this is what I'll attempt next. I'll also pull out the biogold fertilizer I put in there earlier this month.

What is 3% H202 / Qt? Is that peroxide? Do I mist the whole 2 TBSP amount twice a day?

 

[penumbra]

All of what has been said about the poor quality of the soil is true. Still, it does not look like root rot to me. I have lost azaleas to root rot before and this is not the look. When a plant with this many leaves goes from green to brown, it is almost always due to drying. Root rot is a slower insidious process of leaf death. Drying is.............. well, like this. And when the process is halted by watering it is clearly an indication of going dry. Root rot comes on more slowly and any corrective action is also very slow, when it can be stopped at all.
A plant like an azalea that does dry out to the point of leaf desiccation can also experience a case of root rot after the fact. The fibrous roots that desiccate and die can then begin the process of root rot.
IF, it is a case of root rot, I have saved azaleas before by watering with a 50/50 mix of water and hydrogen peroxide.

 

[Glaucus]

I was under the impression that with root rot an entire branch dies. The roots supporting that branch are dead. so the entire branch goes. So all leaves on that branch are equally affected. More critically, all parts of the leaves are equally affected. Not tip burning which is typical an azalea that is too dry.
So with root rot it will not be the entire plant. It will be one part of the plant first, then another. Could be wrong though as I have never had root rot, (at least I think I haven't.)

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

I think this is what I'll attempt next. I'll also pull out the biogold fertilizer I put in there earlier this month.

What is 3% H202 / Qt? Is that peroxide? Do I mist the whole 2 TBSP amount twice a day?

Gosh… sorry… here we go again.

Yet I’m always up to experiment… and never have any issue admitting any miscues. I guess I have to get some cheap nursery azalea to do some experiments to illustrate these issues and post these on a thread.


@pixlweaver So sorry for all of the cross talk, we are sorting things out. If the treatment @Adair is not working and the situation worsens, likely the issue has advanced. So here’s a Hail Mary treatment.

Spray 4 TBSP. of 3% H2O2 per QT on media initially. Let dry to moist. Mist leaves rather then water with 2 TBSP. of 3% H2O2 per QT. Use this for misting and watering from then on.

Water only when the rootball gets just barely moist.

If the worst happens we’d love to have you cut the wire and dump the rootball into a larger pot and shoot a couple photos to this thread

Cheers
DSD sends

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

btw: If things are really bad you can certainly up to 50/50 3% Hydrogen Peroxide/water for once or twice as @Paradox mentioned.

cheers
DSD sends

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

Love the diversity of opinion.. it’s shows we are really thinking.

I’ve found sometimes multiple issues happen to an azalea, perhaps in a short time frame and it becomes quite a puzzle to sort out…. Chasing one thing after another until one either solves the crucial one (if there is only one) and the plant survives or heads for the burn pile.

Try a cycle of overwatering/under watering
… overwatering / over fertilization

Occam's razor stand aside!

Cheers
DSD sends

 

[Glaucus]

Even though I said it looks like fertilizer burn to me, with the biogold I think one shouldn't really be able to get fertilizer burn. If so, it would be lack of water in the leaves.
Even growing many azaleas, I still cannot ID what is wrong with many azaleas that other people post.
I am actually going to overfertilize, not water, and overwater a cutting to see and compare how this looks..

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

Even though I said it looks like fertilizer burn to me, with the biogold I think one shouldn't really be able to get fertilizer burn. If so, it would be lack of water in the leaves.
Even growing many azaleas, I still cannot ID what is wrong with many azaleas that other people post.
I am actually going to overfertilize, not water, and overwater a cutting to see and compare how this looks..

Good idea. I just bought 1/2 dozen azaleas to test 3 ea. 1 gal Beni Kirishima and a Buccaneer in (that ain’t from Hinode Girl, but looks like Unk no Double) over/Under watering and Over fertilization situations.

The real issue often seems to be ‘what’s under the hood’ though. Don’t have time to test all of those variations.

cheers
DSD sends

 

[pixlweaver]

Gosh… sorry… here we go again.

Yet I’m always up to experiment… and never have any issue admitting any miscues. I guess I have to get some cheap nursery azalea to do some experiments to illustrate these issues and post these on a thread.


@pixlweaver So sorry for all of the cross talk, we are sorting things out. If the treatment @Adair is not working and the situation worsens, likely the issue has advanced. So here’s a Hail Mary treatment.

Spray 4 TBSP. of 3% H2O2 per QT on media initially. Let dry to moist. Mist leaves rather then water with 2 TBSP. of 3% H2O2 per QT. Use this for misting and watering from then on.

Water only when the rootball gets just barely moist.

If the worst happens we’d love to have you cut the wire and dump the rootball into a larger pot and shoot a couple photos to this thread

Cheers
DSD sends

Ok thanks! I'll try this and update with the result!

 

[Dermot]

Just reading through the thread. I have an azalea in ICU at the minute. Any update? Did the tree survive?

 

[Srt8madness]

That azalea was grown by Brussels, I know because I have a similar one, in the same pot, with the same wire tie-down. Mine has survived a couple houston summers and is in the greenhouse now because I accidentally unpotted it a couple weeks ago (so basically slip potted it back in). It's looking better than ever.

Brussels grow the plants in pots (peat) then pot them in bonsai containers and send them out the door, volume is the name of the game. Substrate is totally fine for survival. The coarse stuff seen on the surface isnt continuous, its more dressing than anything.
Is it the "best" soil for azalea? No. But Kanuma is much more appropriate for colder climates, than the southern US if someone can't water two or three times per day.

 

[Srt8madness]

Just reading through the thread. I have an azalea in ICU at the minute. Any update? Did the tree survive?

Does yours look the same? Pics?