How to Prune Azaleas

Azaleas are popular garden shrubs that bloom every spring or during the early summer. The colorful blooms add a beautiful touch to backyards or gardens. Periodically, azaleas need to be pruned so that the plant maintains a nice shape and continues to bloom plenty of flowers. You must prune azaleas as soon as they bloom. Read on to learn how to prune azaleas.

Things You'll Need

• Hand clippers
• Pruning shears
• Sterilizing solution

Instructions

1. Inspect your azalea shrubs for dead wood or dead branches. Cut off and remove any dead wood from the plants with a pair of hand clippers. The hand clippers can be found at any hardware store or gardening center.

2. Clean your hand clippers with a sterilizing solution such as denatured alcohol. In case you cut off infected wood, this prevents spreading the disease to the healthy branches and flowers.

3. Continue to remove two to three long, stray branches or pieces of wood. Look into the center of the plants and prune out any main branches that are dead or overgrown. Cutting off the main excess branches will allow the center part of the plant to get more sunlight, which will promote new growth.

4. Prune your azalea shrubs if they've become overgrown and they're blocking something, such as a walkway. Cut the overgrown plants until they are at least one foot tall. Feed the azaleas by using a water-soluble fertilizer so that new stems can grow from the stumps.

5. Shape your azaleas with pruning shears if you want your plants to have a formal, even look. Square off your hedges carefully and clip any uneven shoots or stems.

Tips & Warnings

• Most horticulturists recommend spreading your azalea pruning over a three-year cycle, in order to avoid drastic changes to established plants.