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How to Grow a Miniature Azalea
How to Grow a Miniature Azalea. A "miniature azalea" comes from hybridization or pruning. There isn't an actual botanical classification for miniature azaleas, although azaleas do come in dwarf varieties. Florists sell miniature azaleas as gift plants. Keeping miniature azaleas from florists alive can be a challenge because they're hothouse plants...
A "miniature azalea" comes from hybridization or pruning. There isn't an actual botanical classification for miniature azaleas, although azaleas do come in dwarf varieties. Florists sell miniature azaleas as gift plants. Keeping miniature azaleas from florists alive can be a challenge because they're hothouse plants that aren't likely to survive the transplanting process. If you start with a hybrid from a plant sale or nursery, you can grow and shape an azalea into a miniature or even a bonsai.
Things You'll Need
Florist azalea, dwarf azalea or small hybrid azalea with small leaves
Pot with drainage hole
Potting soil
Peat moss
Pruning shears
Transplant the miniature azalea into a pot no larger than the diameter of the plant's growth. For example, use a decorative 8-inch pot for a plant that is 8 inches across. Use a quick-draining potting mix, such as one with vermiculite, or make one with one part peat to three parts potting soil.
Add 1/2 inch of peat on top of the growing medium around the plant. This nourishes the plant, insulates the roots from excessive heat, and reduces evaporation.
Water the plant lightly immediately after transplanting. Keep the soil moist, but not saturated.
Keep the miniature azalea indoors in a cool room or in a protected environment such as a porch.
Prune the azalea after all blooms are spent. Clear the debris from the pruning to avoid attracting pests.
Prune any long branches to make the azalea thick and lush. Give the azalea a rounded shape so the mature plant will resemble a small tree or shrub.
Tips & Warnings
Select a dwarf azalea with small leaves. These varieties will adapt most successfully as miniature azaleas.
Avoid feeding miniature azaleas, or feed them just once a month and never during blooming. They bloom best without fertilizer because they adapted to a low-nutrient environment. The peat mulch will give them all they need to survive.
Use rainwater to water the miniature azalea if possible.
Don't place the miniature azalea in direct sun, especially during hot weather. Sunlight can damage and even kill the azalea blooms. Keep the plant in the shade.
Don't use a pot with an attached saucer. This can cause the roots to retain extra moisture.
