How to plant and maintain Rhododendrons
When I first joined the Plants2Gardens team my knowledge was, let’s say, a tad limited with regards to the whole plants topic but I was excited to learn and embrace the chilled yet fascinating world of gardening!
Rhododendrons are one of the most admired and forever popular plants that had always intrigued me yet I had always kept my distance from growing them as they did tend to intimidate me as I was always under the impression they were a little tricky – how wrong I was! Many of you may already successfully grow Rhododendrons but if like me, you felt a little anxious then please, don’t worry.
Rhododendrons, Camellias and Azaleas like acidic soil and yes, we can purchase a kit to check the PH level of our garden soil but alternatively, purchase a compact variety and grow it in a pot when all you need is Ericaceous compost – result! This is exactly what I did, it’s so simple and our new Rhododendron Wine and Roses has a compact growing habit which is absolutely perfect for just this. Wine and Roses really is a magnificent variety supplied as an established plant in a 4.5 lite pot and not only does it have beautiful, trumpet shaped, rose pink blooms, the evergreen leaves are spectacular. New Summer foliage is flushed bronze before maturing to green on the surface but the real surprise is the underside of the leaves as they are a deep pink/red shade and amazingly unusual. A taller planter would be fantastic as you will then be able to admire the foliage shades Click Here For More Information On Rhododendron Wine and Roses
By the way, planting them in the garden border isn’t actually as scary as I thought as we also sell packets of Sulphur Soil. They are granules which can be churned into your garden soil just twice a year to adjust the PH making it suitable for Rhododendrons and adding nutrients too – who knew, happy days! Click Here For Great Value Sulphur Soil
A top tip for this time of year is to make sure that we continue to give our Rhododendrons water throughout late Summer and Autumn as this is when the new flower buds really start to take shape for another stunning display next year. The same goes for any Camellias and Azaleas too.
I really do need to share a couple of customer photos with you to finish off this blog perfectly. Brian has been a loyal customer and friend of ours for many years and he is a self-confessed Rhododendron addict. Brian is our ‘Rhododendron Man’ and knows everything about these splendid plants and this can be seen in the photos of his beautiful garden. Thank you Brian for sharing these with us, absolutely gorgeous
Keep watering those Rhodo’s everyone and have a lovely bank holiday weekend.
Lins.