Azalea Feeding

Hi

Can anyone confirm or recommend the correct feed for azalea, Satsuki.

Hie thee down to the nearest garden shop and buy a packet of "Azalea food." Dunno what brands you have over there, but we use Miracle Grow.

Howzit Davemac,

For my Satsuki's I've been using Dana-Gro "Liquid Grow" (07-09-05) during the growing season and Alaska "Morbloom" (00-10-10) during the dormant season. I also put once a month a 1/2 tablespoon of distilled vinegar per 1 gallon of water for the acidity. Hope this helps.

-Tim

JimLewis wrote:Hie thee down to the nearest garden shop and buy a packet of "Azalea food." Dunno what brands you have over there, but we use Miracle Grow.

Thanks Jim. We have Miracle Grow over the pond.

Hawaiian77 wrote:Howzit Davemac,

For my Satsuki's I've been using Dana-Gro "Liquid Grow" (07-09-05) during the growing season and Alaska "Morbloom" (00-10-10) during the dormant season. I also put once a month a 1/2 tablespoon of distilled vinegar per 1 gallon of water for the acidity. Hope this helps.

-Tim

Thanks for the information Tim.

Lime is contained in most Fertilizers. This is a problem for plants that are "intoleratant" to lime. Ericaceous Fertilizers do not contain Lime, so are safe to use with "Lime Hating" Plants. The main "Lime Hating" plants are, Azaleas, Rhododendrons, Camelias and Heathers though there are more. Any plant food that is suitable for ericaceous plants will do. In the past I've used Miracid (discontinued I think) B&Q Ericaceous Plant Food, Miracle Gro Ericaceous Plant Food, Phostrogen Ericaceous, Doff Ericaceous Plant Food, Levington Azalea Camelia & Rhododendron "Plus" and Miracle Grow Organic Choice Azalea Camelia &
Rhododendron food.

Hi , CHEMPAC also do one

Alex e

Damn! Knew I forgot one, used that too!

Kev Bailey wrote:Lime is contained in most Fertilizers. This is a problem for plants that are "intoleratant" to lime. Ericaceous Fertilizers do not contain Lime, so are safe to use with "Lime Hating" Plants. The main "Lime Hating" plants are, Azaleas, Rhododendrons, Camelias and Heathers though there are more. Any plant food that is suitable for ericaceous plants will do. In the past I've used Miracid (discontinued I think) B&Q Ericaceous Plant Food, Miracle Gro Ericaceous Plant Food, Phostrogen Ericaceous, Doff Ericaceous Plant Food, Levington Azalea Camelia & Rhododendron "Plus" and Miracle Grow Organic Choice Azalea Camelia &
Rhododendron food.

Thanks for the reply certainlly enough products there.

Azalea plants can be a little choosy about different types of fertilizer so it is always a good policy to stick with a product which is recommended for ericaceous plants. My personal choice is Miracid, which is available in most garden centres and DIY outlets. The packets usually contain the note "formally Miracid" the beauty with this fertilizer is that it contains a large number of trace elements which many other types do not contain. It has a composition of NPK = 17-7-27. Miracid is also a soil acidifier which Azaleas require - a Ph of 5.0 to 6.5 being considered as the best level for these plants. I feed throughout the growing season as recommended but I have found that a pro-rata amount of feed, each time you water, gives an even better result.
A little tip is not to feed after 'bud break' until flowers are finished since this tends to extend flowering period.
Towards the end of the year I start to feed with a Tomato fertilizer which I beleive helps to produce better flowers in the following year.
HTH
Barrie

Miracid was rebranded as "Miracle Gro ericaceous plant food" in about 2004. One point to be careful of with Satsuki's is that overfeeding can lead to leaf disolouration and eventually death. Little and often is good advice but watch for leaves turning a darker green than usual and if that occurs, water less frequenrtly with plain tap water and mist the tops regularly. They generally recover in a week or two.

Kev Bailey wrote:Damn! Knew I forgot one, used that too!

senior moment Kev!!

Alex e

I agree with Kev - don't be tempted to feed more than the recommended amount and as Kev suggests keep an eye on the overall condition of leaves.

toggsie wrote:Azalea plants can be a little choosy about different types of fertilizer so it is always a good policy to stick with a product which is recommended for ericaceous plants. My personal choice is Miracid, which is available in most garden centres and DIY outlets. The packets usually contain the note "formally Miracid" the beauty with this fertilizer is that it contains a large number of trace elements which many other types do not contain. It has a composition of NPK = 17-7-27. Miracid is also a soil acidifier which Azaleas require - a Ph of 5.0 to 6.5 being considered as the best level for these plants. I feed throughout the growing season as recommended but I have found that a pro-rata amount of feed, each time you water, gives an even better result.
A little tip is not to feed after 'bud break' until flowers are finished since this tends to extend flowering period.
Towards the end of the year I start to feed with a Tomato fertilizer which I beleive helps to produce better flowers in the following year.
HTH
Barrie

Many thanks for such an informative reply.It seems a lot of fellow members use this product. I was reading ' The Art of Bonsai' by P.Adams and he also advises Tomerite in early spring and towards the end of the yearly feeding program. A product Fisons 'GH5' during the months Jun / Jul.

Kev Bailey wrote:Miracid was rebranded as "Miracle Gro ericaceous plant food" in about 2004. One point to be careful of with Satsuki's is that overfeeding can lead to leaf disolouration and eventually death. Little and often is good advice but watch for leaves turning a darker green than usual and if that occurs, water less frequenrtly with plain tap water and mist the tops regularly. They generally recover in a week or two.

Thanks again Kevin for your advice.

Unless he's revised it, "Art of Bonsai" dates back to the very early 1980s; I wouldn't take that info as gospel any more.

Hi Jim
Found the book in a local charity shop. This copy was reprinted in 1993.

But I don't think it has been "revised." This was his first book. Many of the trees you see as veritable twigs in that book have really matured when you see them again in later books.