Indoor azaleas are considered annual plants that are discarded immediately after flowering. Garden azaleas, on the other hand, will remain with us. But why is it like that? Can't you overwinter the azalea out of the house? We'll tell you.
Basically, you need to know that the flowering time of the azalea falls in autumn and winter. Therefore, the term hibernation is rather inappropriate.
Ask yourself the question of whether indoor plants can bloom several times in a row and how you can do it.
Wintering begins to prolong the flowering period of the plant.
There are three tricks:
- Cool Location
- No Draft
- No direct sun
➩ Demands on the indoor azalea
The ideal temperature for a long flowering period is between 8 and 16 degrees. The bedroom is often the perfect place for an azalea, but the hallway or kitchen can also be suitable. Drafts must always be avoided, as the indoor azalea quickly withdraws the energy from the flowers, which promotes fading. The flowers don't like direct sun at all, so they wither quickly. For the longest possible flowering period, the plant should experience at most some morning or evening sun.
Once the flowering period is over, the indoor azalea looks bare and unattractive. However, you do not have to dispose of them, because with the right tricks, the plant will flower again next year.
➩ Enjoy indoor azaleas for several years
Once the flowers have withered, the time has come for the right care that will allow them to overwinter.
1 In the first step, the remaining seed heads must be carefully removed and cut out. This is important as the plant will continue to nourish the seed pods and will lack the vigor to form buds. Therefore, remove the seeds and repot the azalea. The plant should now be stored in a light but cool place until May.
2 In May, put the indoor azalea outside. Choose a shady and sheltered place where there are no drafts. If you have the opportunity, plant the azalea in a shady flower bed. Make sure that the root ball is always moisthowever, no waterlogging forms. As soon as the night temperatures drop in the first days of September, the azalea will form new buds.
3 Bring the plant back indoors before the first night frost and place it in a cool place.
In summary, you can enjoy your azalea for several years if you:
- Remove seed heads after the last flowering
- store the plant in a bright and cool place until May
- putting the azalea outside from May to September
- choose a shady summer spot
- bringing the azalea inside before the first night frost
➩ Overwintering garden azaleas
Semi-tall or tall azaleas, which may adorn the flower beds in the garden or form hedges, can of course remain in the garden over the winter, even when there is frost. These are mostly the rhododendrons, whose leaves fall off in winter, giving the plant excellent protection against the cold.
Azaleas in tubs
If you keep half-tall azaleas in tubs on the terrace or balcony, you must protect the plant in winter. Night frost damages potted plants because the roots don't go deep enough into the ground to absorb water. Therefore, bring your azalea in the planter into the apartment before the first night frost and place it in a shady and cool place. The choice of location should not be near the heating and should not offer any draughts. If you also cut back the seed heads of the potted plants after the flowering period, the azalea will bud again next autumn.
With these tricks, you'll be able to enjoy beautiful blooms in late fall and early winter and ensure you can enjoy the blooms for years to come.
If you don't want to see the bare green in summer, you can simply place the azalea in a flower bed and plant tall perennials around it. The perennials provide the azalea with important shade and prevent you from having to look at the bare green throughout the summer.