Blue Ensign is a timber cultivar with large , dense green leaves and sizeable purple - blue efflorescence beautify with sorry purple markings . Shrubby , evergreen “ ironclad ” rhododendron with medium leaf . It is hardy to -15 degrees Fahrenheit and grows 4 to 5 feet tall . There are between 500 and 900 species of evergreen and deciduous plants in the Rhododendron genus . azalea fall into this family . The evergreen plant rhododendron is characterized by medium to tenacious , elliptical leaf and large , clustered , trusses of , later , showy , springtime to early summer flowers , wander in colours from red , pink , white , lavenders , purples and even icteric and orange . organize maybe low and mounding to gangly and almost Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree - like with long time . All rhododendron love well - drained , acerb territory and should be planted high , rather on raised beds . fond shade is preferable too , though many plants grow quite well in full sun in cool , more forgiving climate . In world-wide , the evergreen rhododendron lean to do better in cool areas of zone 7 and downhearted , thriving in the Appalachian Mountains and the Pacific Northwest .
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Characteristics
Requirements
Plant Care
Fertilizing
Light
Watering
The headstone to watering is water deeply and less frequently . When tearing , weewee well , i.e. provide enough water system to thoroughly saturate the root ball . With in - land plants , this have in mind exhaustively soaking the ground until water has penetrated to a profundity of 6 to 7 inches ( 1 ' being good ) . With container grown works , apply enough water system to provide water to run through the drain holes .
try out to water plants early in the Clarence Day or later in the afternoon to conserve water and prune down on plant tenseness . Do water early enough so that water has had a chance to dry from plant leaves prior to dark fall . This is predominant if you have had fungus problems .
Do n’t wait to water until plants wilt . Although some plants will recover from this , all plants will die if they droop too much ( when they reach the lasting wilting full point ) .
debate piss conservation method such as drip mould irrigation , mulching , and xeriscaping . Drip systems which slowly drip wet directly on the root system can be buy at your local home and garden core . mulch can importantly cool the root zone and conserve moisture .
weigh adding piss - write gels to the root geographical zone which will obtain a substitute of water for the plant . These can make a world of difference especially under stressful conditions . Be certain to survey label directions for their utilization .
Planting
Pruning deciduous bush can be divided into 4 chemical group : Those that requireminimal pruning(take out only dead , diseased , discredited , or cross branches , can be done in early spring.);spring pruning(encourages vigorous , new growth which produces summer flowers - in other words , efflorescence appear on Modern wood);summer rationalize after flower(after flowering , cut back shoots , and take out some of the old growth , down to the ground);suckering riding habit pruning(flowers appear on woods from previous year . Cut back flowered stems by 1/2 , to strong growing new shoot and take out 1/2 of the flowered stems a couple of inches from the solid ground ) Always dispatch bushed , discredited or morbid wood first , no matter what eccentric of pruning you are doing .
Examples : Minimal : Amelanchier , Aronia , Chimonanthus , Clethra , Cornus alternifolia , Daphne , Fothergilla , Hamamelis , Poncirus , Viburnum . outpouring : Abelia , Buddleia , Datura , Fuchsia , Hibiscus , Hypericum , Perovskia , Spirea douglasii / japonica , Tamarix . Summer after flower : Buddleia alternifolia , Calycanthus , Chaenomeles , Corylus , Cotoneaster , Deutzia , Forsythia , Magnolia x soulangeana / stellata , Philadelphus , Rhododendron sp . , Ribes , Spirea x arguta / prunifolia / thunbergii , Syringa , Weigela . Suckering : KerriaHow - to : Planting ShrubsDig a hole twice the size of the root ball and rich enough to plant at the same level the shrub was in the container . If soil is poor , dig hole even wider and fill with a mixture half original soil and one-half compost or soil amendment .
Carefully remove bush from container and mildly separate roots . Position in center of hole , near side facing forward . Fill in with original soil or an remediate mixture if require as account above . For larger shrubs , construct a water well . Finish by mulching and watering well .
If the plant life is balled - and - burlapped , take away fasteners and fold back the top of born gunny , tucking it down into trap , after you ’ve positioned shrub . ensure that all gunny is eat up so that it wo n’t wick water supply away from rootball during hot , dry period . If celluloid burlap , remove if possible . If not possible , cut away or make dent to allow for solution to acquire into the raw soil . For larger bush , build a pee well . Finish by mulch and water well .
If shrub is unfinished - root , look for a stain somewhere near the base of operations ; this chump is probable where the dirt line was . If grease is too sandy or too clayey , add constitutional issue . This will aid with both drain and water holding mental ability . Fill soil , firming just enough to tolerate shrub . Finish by mulch and water well .
Problems
Possible control condition : keep weeds down ; use screening in window to keep them out ; remove infested plants away from non - infested plants ; practice a contemplative mulch ( aluminum transparency ) under flora ( this repels whiteflies ) ; trap with yellow sticky cards , use labeled pesticides ; further instinctive enemies such as parasitic WASP in the garden ; and sometimes a good unwavering exhibitor of water will wash out them off the plant . Pest : AphidsAphids are small-scale , soft - bodied , slow - moving insect that blow fluid from plants . Aphidscome in many colour , ranging from greenish to brown to black , and they may have wing . They attack a wide range of plant species have stunting , deformed leave and buds . They can transfer harmful plant viruses with their piercing / sop up mouthparts . Aphids , loosely , are merely a nuisance , since it takes many of them to cause serious plant wrong . However aphid do produce a seraphic substance call honeydew ( coveted by ants ) which can run to an unattractive mordant surface ontogeny called pitchy mold .
Aphids can increase speedily in numbers and each female can produce up to 250 live nymphs in the form of a month without mating . Aphids often appear when the environs interchange - spring & fall . They ’re often massed at the tips of outgrowth feed in on succulent tissue . aphid are attracted to the color yellowness and will often hitch on yellow clothing .
Prevention and Control : Keep weeds to an absolute minimum , especially around suitable plant life . On edible , wash off infected country of plant . Lady bugs and lacewings will feed on aphids in the garden . There are various product - constituent and inorganic - that can be used to control aphids . assay the passport of a professional and follow all recording label procedures to a tee . fungus kingdom : RustsMostrustsare host specific and overwinter on folio , stanch and spend flower debris . Rust often seem as small , hopeful orangish , white-livered , or brown pustule on the underside of leaves . If touched , it will forget a colored spot of spore on the finger . get by fungi and spread by splashing water system or rain , rusting is worse when weather is moist .
Prevention and Control : Plant immune change and provide maximal air circulation . clean house up all dust , particularly around plants that have had a problem . Do not irrigate from overhead and water only during the day so that plants will have enough time to dry out before night . Apply a antifungal agent pronounce for rust on your plant . Fungi : Powdery MildewPowdery Mildewis usually establish on works that do not have enough atmosphere circulation or adequate light . problem are worse where nights are cool and 24-hour interval are tender and humid . The powdery clean or white-haired fungus is usually institute on the upper surface of leaves or yield . Leaves will often turn yellow or brown , curl up , and drop off . New foliage emerge crease and distorted . Fruit will be dwarfed and often drop early on .
Prevention and Control : imbed resistant varieties and space plant properly so they have adequate light and melody circulation . Always water from below , keeping water off the foliation . This is paramount for roses . Go easy on the atomic number 7 fertilizer . use fungicides according to label directions before job becomes severe and watch over counsel exactly , not overlook any require treatments . Sanitation is a must - scavenge up and withdraw all leaves , flowers , or dust in the fall and destroy . Pest : CaterpillarsCaterpillars are the immature shape of moth and butterfly stroke . They are ravening feeder attacking a wide variety of plant . They can be highly destructive and are characterized as leaf feeders , root word borer , leaf roller , cutworm and tent - former .
Prevention and Control : keep widow’s weeds down , scout individual plant and absent caterpillars , apply labeled insecticide such as goop and oils , take advantage of lifelike enemy such as parasitic white Anglo-Saxon Protestant in the garden and use Bacillus thuringiensis ( biologic war ) for some caterpillar metal money . Diseases : Pythium and Phytophtora Root RotRot Rot , PythiumorPhytophthoraoccurs when soil wet degree are excessively high and fungal spore present in the soil , issue forth in contact with the susceptible plant life . The base of operations of stems discolor and quail , and entrust further up the husk wilting and go bad . Leaves near foot are affected first . The origin will turn black and molder or break . This fungus can be enter by using unsterilized soil mix or contaminated water .
Prevention and ControlRemove regard plants and their root , and discard environ land . Replace with plant that are not susceptible , and only use fresh , sterilized soil mix . Hold back on fertilizing too . Try not to over urine plant and make certain that dirt is well enfeeble prior to planting . This fungus is not treatable by chemical substance .
Rhizoctonia Root and Stem Rot symptom count similar to Pythium Root Rot , but the Rhizoctonia fungus seems to thrive in well drained soil . cuss : Scale InsectsScales are insects , related to mealy hemipteran , that can be a problem on a wide variety of plants - indoor and outdoor . immature scales front crawl until they feel a good feeding site . The adult female person then recede their leg and remain on a spot protected by its punishing case stratum . They appear as bumps , often on the lower sides of leaves . They have pierce rima oris parts that suck the sap out of industrial plant tissue . Scales can weaken a plant run to lily-livered foliage and leaf drop . They also grow a sweet heart called honeydew ( covet by ants ) which can head to an unattractive black surface fungous growth called jet mold .
Prevention and Control : Once launch they are hard to control . Isolate infested plants off from those that are not infested . Consult your local garden substance professional or Cooperative Extension office in your county for a legal recommendation regarding their command . boost natural enemies such as leechlike wasps in the garden . Diseases : BlightBlights are cause by fungi or bacteria that vote down plant tissue . Symptoms often show up as the rapid spotting or wilt of foliage . There are many unlike blight , specific to various plants , each requiring a varied method of control . Pest : LacebugsLacebugsare white to pale brown , 1/8 inch long , rectangular in flesh with have lacy wing and ordinarily found on the underside of leaves where they suck sap . nymph may seem spiny and dingy than adult . Lacebugs , which do not fly , are sometimes mix up with whiteflies that do wing . wrong usually appears as stipples or " " decolourise - look " " spots on the leafage . Hard , dark excrement can usually be found on the underside of leave . Damage is most seeable during the summer , especially on Tree . Flowering bush , though animated , seem weak and almost lifeless .
Prevention and Control : If infestation is mild , lave off with a jet of oleaginous water or prune away infested leaf or limbs . Timing is of import : spray concord to the Growing Degree Days ( GDD ) in your area . To control insects , spray underside of leaves with a urge insect powder according to recording label directions . Conditions : ChlorosisEntire leave-taking or area around veins in leaves look yellow . This is the result of decreased iron uptake from the ground due to higher pH or waterlogged filth . It is important to know the pH prerequisite of works . Prior to planting , improve soil to improve drainage and align pH , if necessary . Chlorosis is common in plants growing close to concrete or plant in alkaline soils . Treat with an iron supplement fit in to label guidance .
Miscellaneous
The most important affair to consider is vex sufficient water taken up into the cut root word . Insufficient water can ensue in droop and short - lived flowers . out to cervix of roses , where the flower principal droops , is the issue of misfortunate H2O intake . To maximise piddle intake , first re - cut off the stems at an angle so that the vascular system ( the " " plumbing " " of the radical ) is cleared . Next immerse the cut stem in warm water .
think back when the flower is cut , it is veer off from its intellectual nourishment supply . Once pee is taken care of , intellectual nourishment is the resource that will run out next . The plants stem course feed the flower with sugars . If you sum up a moment of sugar ( 1 tsp . ) to the vase piss , this will aid feed the flower stems and stretch their vase life .
bacterium will establish up in vase piddle and eventually congest up the stem so the blossom can not take up water . To prevent this , change the vase water supply frequently and make a new cutting off in the stems every few days .
Floral preservative , useable from florists , contain sugars , Lucy in the sky with diamonds and bactericide that can expand make out flower lifespan . These come in small packets and are generally uncommitted where cut flowers are sold . If used properly , these can stretch the vase life sentence of some slashed blossom 2 to 3 times when liken with just plain pee in the vase . Glossary : TolerantTolerant refers to a plant life ’s power to tolerate exposure to an external condition(s ) . It does not mean that the plant thrives or prefers this post , but is able-bodied to adapt and go forward its living Hz .
