AusBonsai

Today I found 3 hours spare and some Azalea that needed urgent help.
I took no photos because I couldn't be bothered, and no I will not be writing a 3 thousand word post to compensate
The main problem was a large Kurume Hinode Giri which has been suffering from yellowing leaves which were then burning off. It had been like this for about 6-7 weeks but with limited time etc etc it had to wait.

The problem was a whole mess of rotten pine potting mix around the roots. The fine roots that were inside this had turned brown and were dead. All that was living was the roots larger than 0.2mm with some finer feeders in patches.

Out of a tomato box of roots, I trimmed, tickled, raked and washed out 60+% of the roots and nearly all of the old soil and replaced it with 100% inorganic mix, most of which is 1-7mm pumice. It is now in a 40cm plastic pot drenched in seasol. Over the next week or so temps will be reaching the high 30's, you could say I am crazy. The plant will be kept in the shade for the next few weeks and pumped up with some growth promoters and hopefully it will all have been worthwhile.

Realistically it was a case of do or die for this plant. It could well turn up its toes now but it would have done anyway if I did nothing

Hi Damien mate Azalea's grow or die as Shibui told me when i last attended the Club meet , that i have learned at a cost .All the plants i dug fom the garden last year did a turn around and the ones i expected to live died and the other i expected to die , lived . To me they are one of the most difficult plants to maintain in Bonsai pots up here . I'm still sizing up the rest of the bigger plants in the ground but they too are turning their toes up . Karumes seem to be a little touching , Indica and indica-x are a bit more robust . I have just re-potted and split a big Satsuki into 3 , 1 has died 2 are growing well . Hope it makes it .

Cheers Alpine

Damian & Alpine, the timing of this post & what you both have to say is making me uneasy about a load of new plants I have gained access to dig, they are mainly azalea & have to be out of the ground within the next 2wks otherwise they will be dozered....

I stopped because of a pile of concrete in the front yard that I could use in my own garden. The house & garden was built in the 50's & still owned by the same man, he is in his 80's & even after several heart attacks is still full of life (only got out of hospital on boxing day). Had a great chat about plants & gardens & time & space, by the end of it I came away with permission to remove everything but a large tulip tree. I am after a rare old Gardenia species that is in the garden and a load of different Hippeastrum species he had collected over the decades.

I am not too concerned about the timing except where it comes to the azalea & this thread on top... Any tips to increase the chances of them surviving?

Intersting to see how it goes Damian.
Matt
try to keep as big root ball intact as you can and do not let it dry out at all. Wrap in old wet sheets till you get home and can pot up

Ken

Hi Matta , mate i would dig them as flowering has finished here so it would be the same in most area's . Personally i will be digging these bugger soon and i wont bare root or semi bare root but basically over pot them to retain all the material they were growing in . I have had 3 just die in the terraces so its not all in my silly collecting methods , it happens in the ground . Best of luck but give it a shot , over pot the lot .

Cheers Alpine

Thanks Alpine & Ken, I got a camellia, rhodo & several azalea out before the spade broke

Gives me time to pot this lot up while I wait to see if Fiskars is going to honour the 25yr warranty they give, it took 2mths of back & forth last time before they finally did, here's hoping it doesnt take as long this time

I have just collected 7 azaleas from a garden destined for demolition. On previous experience I expect most to survive, even at this time of year. A couple I got 2 years ago had been sitting on the waste pile for nearly a week before they got to me - both survived.

These latest were all bare rooted as much as possible to remove garden soil, roots cut back hard and tops cut down to reduce leaf mass ( I know azalea will shoot well from old wood). All have been placed under the benches for protection (also no room on the benches at present.)
re placing collected plants in full sun Matt, It would be interesting to see how azaleas go if placed into full light when collected.

I believe azaleas can survive transplant at any time of year.

Shibui, It's great to hear your experiences, these used to be protected by the house from about midday so have put them in my shadehouse that will give similar conditions. Full sun for me is from dawn to dusk & while I know many azalea varieties will cope with that I would prefer to work them up to it once going strong again. Having said that, I have a few more to collect so might just have to experiment

Careful there Matt. No 2 varieties are the same.
For me, it was a gambit. If I sit they would die, at least now the roots are in nice gritty free draining material that will stay moist but not wet with plenty of air flow. I checked the ph level on the big one and it was about 4.5-5 acid which I think is way too much even though they are acid lovers. At least the pumice is stable and will not change in ph.
The plant appears to have enough vigour to pull through.

I will put up some pics in a couple of weeks

Shibui is right about transplanting at any time, I transplanted a beautiful Christmas Cheer years back, it lost a branch here and there but overall it came good till root rot got it

Just for the record

I know you said you will be keeping them in the shade but in the heat we are getting at the moment even that amount of sun would worry me in this condition. Anyway my recomendation is to treat with chelated Iron every few days. I believe this will be a more instant boost than any hormone and aid in the survival for azalea.

Thanks Brett. Have not heard of that method

Ps. Only in the sun for photo

Nice score Damien
i do love azaleas no matter where they come from!

Ken