Q. Last year, after their blooming, we pruned our evergreen and deciduous azaleas back pretty severely. They were really getting carried away and we felt we needed to curb them. As a result, they REALLY got carried away. We were afraid if we re-pruned them, we would be pruning off all the flower buds. What to do? When is the latest that we can prune and still manage a good flowering? Thanks. Marty Williams – – Sumner, WA
A. There seems to be a theme here today – growth mismatch. In this case it seems the growth is incompatible with the gardener. You mention that you felt they needed to be curbed. Why did you feel that way? Obviously the azaleas have a different opinion. If you are dealing with an issue of space then you may want to consider moving the azaleas to a part of the garden where they can spread their leaves. Why fight with them? Repeat after me – “Free The Azaleas”. If on the other hand you can reach a compromise with the azaleas, and still want to manage their size, limit your pruning to 1/3 of the growth. You have about a month after the azaleas bloom to prune without the potential for removing buds that are forming for next years display.