How to Plant Pink Flowering Almond Shrubs

The flowering almond shrub produces a profusion of pink or white flowers each spring.

Often seen in old-fashioned gardens, the dwarf flowering almond and the flowering almond are the kind of shrubs that are not all that remarkable during most of the year. But during their flowering period, watch out! This is when the flowering almond literally blossoms into a sweet harbinger of spring.

Planting a flowering almond in your yard will be easy to do, and the shrub will grow well for you if you provide it with a sunny, or partly sunny spot, that is moist but well drained.

Things You'll Need

• Shovel
• Knife or pruning shears
• Mulch
• All-purpose fertilizer

Instructions

1. Prepare to plant a pink flowering almond shrub by digging a hole roughly three times as wide and the same depth as the root ball of your shrub. Loosen and gently break up the sides and bottom of the hole with your shovel. Fill the planting hole with water, and allow it to seep into the surrounding soil.

2. Gently remove the flowering almond bush from its container by laying the container on its side and pressing the sides to loosen the root ball, then pulling the container off the root ball. Never pull the plant out of the container by its trunk.

3. Inspect the root ball, and prune away any damaged roots. Loosen the roots by hand. If there are roots tightly circling the root ball, cut them with your pruners or a knife.

4. Settle the flowering almond into the hole. If it sits too deep, put some of the excavated soil under it until the top of the root ball is even with the top of the soil. Ensure that the top of the roots are level with or just slightly higher than the ground line. Fill the hole in with the dug-up soil, gently tamping it in.

5. Create a ridge circling the flowering almond bush, several inches from the trunk. Fill this ridge with water and let it drain into the ground.

6. Apply a layer of mulch 1 to 2 inches thick to the area. Don't allow the mulch to come into direct contact with the trunk and stems of the bush.

Tips & Warnings

• According to the University of Florida IFAS Extension, regular fertilizer applications can help keep flowering almonds from becoming victims of pests and diseases like borers, leaf spot and twig cankers.

References

• University of Florida IFAS Extension: Prunus triloba var. multiplex: Flowering-Almond
• Virginia Cooperative Extension: Shrubs: Functions, Planting, and Maintenance