AusBonsai

Hi all im new to the community and have a plant i need help with.
Im not sure on how would be the best shape for this Azalea it is about 20cm tall any advice would be great thanks
oh and if this is in the wrong place my appolagies

Patrick

Well the possibilities are ofcourse endless but one suggestion is to grow it into a taller tree. A bigger tree will have more flowers and so be very specky at that time and also i think the scale would better suit the relatively large looking leaves. To do this you could simply cut off the lower left hand branch at the trunk, sealing it well. Then where it forks take off the right hand side to create a curve and movement, again sealing well. Then just grow it on, getting it up and putting lots of bends into the trunk by wiring or cutting. Prune the lower growth and branches back to keep it going up. The idea would be to grow an interesting trunk first, this will be the basis of a beautiful tree, and then add the branches to that after.
All the best,
neal.

Hi Pat
It will take a long time to grow an Azalea in a pot to a larger tree, so if you wanted to make bigger then put it i the ground for a few years

If you prefer to keep a small tree and work on it now, then you need to do some work. By working the tree at this time you will not get much more growth than you have now. once you have decided, then go for it

Azalea leaves reduce reallly well to at least 1/4 the mature size, so having a small tree not an issue.

Pick your first branch on the left of the 2 you have there, and wire to shape, ( Azalea are verry Brittle so wil have trouble bending the larger one). Remove the other branch not needed.
Pick your next branch up and wire as well. Keep a top shoot to build the Apex of the tree, and find another one to get a back branch as well. Apply wire and bend carfully to get them all to shape.

The idea is to wire Branches and trunk to give you nice pads to hold flowers and foliage, and a nice trunk line.

All the shoots and Branches you have now, cut them back hard so to leave only 1 or 2 leaves on each. Do not leave large straight stems like you have on the ones you have cut already.
As the new shoots appear from where you cut back, Let them all extend to about 2-3 sets of leafes then cut again. Apply wire to them as needed and you will find in about 1 season you will have a nice little tree. to enjoy

All the cuttings you have taken off, put them in as cuttings and once on their way, you can put them in the ground to grow on for a few years to give the larger stock we all need

Azaleas we mostly prune after flowering in spring

Ken

Thanks for the advise Neal and Ken I shall begin the project

Hi Patrick, Neals advice is good. From the look of the foliage your azalea looks to be an indica which means it has the potential to grow quite big. You should exploit that potential and grow it into a bigger tree. One of the main problems for us bonsai enthusiasts with regards to azalea is finding them with one trunk. The nursery men seem to pinch them to encourage bushy growth which means for us multiple trunk plants. If you reduce your plant to one nice trunkline then spend a couple of years growing it a bit taller you will end up with a much better tree.
Craig

Thanks you also Craig

Looks like you have a little bit of trouble (or will have in Spring) with Lace Bug. They are the cause of the white spotting on the leaves (scarring from the insect sucking sap from the leaf)and if not kept under control will cause damage, and if the plant is under some other stresses they can tip the plant over the edge and into the bin. They will appear as small grey/black flies on the underside of the leaf.

Gday Damian

What would be the best way to control this Lace Bug

Andrew

Systemic sprays (names escape me at present)applied when the pest becomes present are great if you have several Azalea. Manual control is a little time consuming but effective or pyrethrum spray is good if you have only a few(size dependent of course).
The drawback of systemic is that it stinks and is toxic stuff, so if you are using it, be sure to suit up and wash down after, it also wipes out anything else that happens to come into contact with it so use it carefully.
You don't want to be spraying Pyrethrum on yourself either although it is not as toxic, it is not the sort of stuff you want on your skin as there are other compounds in the mix aside from the Pyrethrum.
Other than that you could try making up some strong garlic spray mixed with hot chilli and a little parafin oil to help it stick, keeps vampires at bay too.

Thanks Damian

I have this problem but have never really paid to much attention to it

Andrew

What, vampires !!!!!

Hi Andrew,
I have used Confidor on Azaleas for many years and found it to be very good.
It may also be the Systemic whihc Damian was referring to (Edit...Although on second reading Damian's post he may be referring to something stronger)
Regards
Steve

Hi all,

I have quite a few Azaleas and use Confidor with excellent results on Lace Bug. Usually takes 2 applications with 7 days in-between.

Tech