Lush inflorescences of spectacular plants of the genus Rhododéndron compete with roses in beauty and decorativeness. Elegant bell-shaped flowers of various colors grow on trees up to 2 m high. Some types of rhododendrons drop leaves - they are referred to as deciduous house plants and are called azaleas, most of the genus are evergreen and semi-evergreen shrubs.
How much rhododendron blooms in time
The flowering period can be as little as 10 days or stretch for 2 months. On average, most bushes bloom for about two weeks.
Some types of evergreen rhododendrons in open ground bloom twice a year. This happens if an abnormal heat sets in at the end of summer or the beginning of September.
Rhododendron Evergreen Humboldt
It is interesting: biologists call this flowering harmful to plants, because most swollen buds do not have time to open and pollinate before the onset of cold weather.
Subsequently, in the spring of next year, the laying of generative buds does not occur, and this becomes the reason why the rhododendron does not bloom in the open ground, or blooms much worse than last year.
The main reasons for the lack of flowering
Grown from cuttings obtained from adult plants, rhododendrons can bloom the very next year after rooting. Wild plant species - Japanese, Daurian, Canadian, which reproduce under natural conditions by seeds and bloom 3-4 years after the emergence of seedlings.
At home, specimens grown in their own garden or in a summer cottage from seeds sometimes bloom only in the seventh year of life.
Important! Rhododendron refers to cross-pollinated plants. Without the participation of insects, seed sets will be weak.
The reasons why rhododendron is not blooming may be:
- unsuitable soil and climate;
- lighting conditions;
- lack of good nutrition;
- insufficient or improper care of plants.
Too alkaline soil
Under natural conditions, representatives of the genus Rhododéndron grow even in the mountains. A compact layer of soil rich in humus is suitable for their compact surface roots. The root system develops well on loose, breathable lands, having an acid reaction. High acidity of the soil is supported by rotted bark, fallen leaves, small branches, and needles.
Leaf chlorosis
Rotting organic residues retain moisture, create favorable conditions for the development of humus-producing microorganisms that are beneficial for plants, provide sufficient ventilation of the root system, and isolate micro- and macroelements in a form accessible for assimilation by the roots of shrubs.
The increased alkaline reaction of the soil in the places where rhododendrons grow, violates their natural growth conditions. This leads to the fact that the bushes do not bloom, do not give an annual growth, begin to weaken, get sick, suffer from pests.
If rhododendron is planted on alkaline soil, yellowness appears on the leaves over time - this is how chlorosis manifests itself, leading to drying of the leaves and gradually to the death of the entire bush.
Inadequate fertilizer, lack of elements
Numerous fibrous roots of plants of the genus Rhododéndron are created in order to accumulate nutrients in themselves, and then pump them through the internal wire system of the stems into the leaves, flowers and fruits of the plant.
Boron deficiency
The lack of iron and manganese that occurs when the soil is low in acidity, lack of nitrogen, phosphorus, and boron leads to poor growth of rhododendron, leaf spotting and rust, leaves brown and red spots, and stops development.
The bush grows on the wrong substrate.
An incompletely qualified answer to the question of why rhododendron does not grow can lead to the fact that the soil substrate will be improperly prepared for planting cuttings or seedlings of plants.
Rh luteum
The height of the bushes, the intensity of the color of the flowers, the duration and timing of flowering, and frost resistance largely depend on its composition. Although the latter factor also depends on the varietal characteristics of the rhododendron variety.
Particularly winter-hardy species are the University of Helsinki variety, which does not freeze at -40 ° C, and varieties that can withstand temperatures of -32 ° C are Daursky, Ledebura, Schlippenbach.
Note! All plants of the genus Rhododéndron incorporate rhodotoxin, an organic compound belonging to the group of poisons that affect the state of the nervous system. Because of this, some species of rhododendrons (Rh Luteum, Rh Japonicum, Rh Viscosum), in which there are especially many of these substances, are poorly pollinated by insects.
But what if the rhododendron does not bloom
There are always many good reasons to worry about why rhododendron did not bloom. The duration and time of onset of flowering of rhododendrons growing in open ground depends on the genotype of its species, age, growing conditions and weather conditions.
Mountain Rhododendrons
The heat helps to reduce the flowering time by 4-7 days, cool rainy weather extends the flowering period by 20-30 days.
In order to determine what to do if the rhododendron does not grow, it is necessary to find out in what natural conditions its development occurs.
For example, the Tibetan rhododendron, accustomed to living on stony low-fertile soil in a cold climate with low atmospheric pressure at an altitude of 4000 m, will hardly survive in a garden where the conditions are very different from the usual natural ones. This may also be the secret of why rhododendrons changed color when they were transplanted to another place.
Additional Information: the key to the abundant flowering of rhododendrons is the sufficient watering of the bushes at the bud planting stage last year.
In order for rhododendrons to bloom for a long time and plentifully, it should be borne in mind that:
- they grow poorly and bloom in the shade, but they are good in the light, and can not stand bright light - therefore, plants should grow in partial shade, direct sunlight should not fall on the bush for longer than 5-6 hours a day;
- the soil should have an acidity of not higher than 5.5 pH - if necessary, measures are taken to increase the acidity of the soil using sphagnum peat, heather land, citric or acetic acid, while controlling the pH value so as not to exceed permissible norms and not to destroy plants ;
- Rhododéndron belongs to hydrophilic plants - flowers like watering carried out by rain, spring or standing water, the frequency of watering depends on dryness and air temperature, waterlogging of the soil is detrimental to the root system;
- very severe frosts can lead to the freezing of cold-resistant species of rhododendrons - the negative consequences will be prevented by insulated protective shelters and, in the winter, mulching of the root zone.
Protective shelter
Regular feeding of rhododendrons
Plants need top dressing at all stages of growth. At the beginning of the growing season, emphasis is placed on nitrogen-containing fertilizers, which allow the roots, stems and leaves after winter dormancy to move to intensive development.
In the summer, feeding is carried out as the plant grows green mass, forms and dissolves buds, forms fruit boxes.
At all stages it is advisable to use ready-made multicomponent complex fertilizers designed for azaleas and rhododendrons. An extensive range of drugs offered by manufacturing companies allows you to choose the funds needed by plants at different stages of their life.
Rhododendron bushes grow very slowly and sometimes bloom not soon. But gardeners still love to plant these beautiful shrubs, because it is not for nothing that these plants have a second name - alpine rose.
