The last weekend in May was still a bit early for most azalea work, but for some of the larger trees or those still in development it was just perfect.
Here’s a large Satsuki Azalea that I worked on. The spent flowers were removed and shoots paired down to two. Azaleas are basal dominant so three leaves were left on each shoot near the top of the tree and only two left nearer the bottom. Some of the branches are still being grown out, so more leaves were left on these as well. After the work was done the topsoil was replaced with fresh soil. The tree was well watered. Then milled New Zealand Sphagnum moss was applied to help keep in moisture.

