Garden Secrets How to Plant Rhododendron

Rhododendron is a shrub that has flowers like the azalea.  It’s a perennial that is long-lived provided you plant it in a location that meets the plants growing needs.

Know that in the past I planted rhododendron on the east side of my home.  In an area that was too close to my home's overhang and suspect that the shade was too much.  The plant grew but never bloomed. 

I transplanted my rhododendron to the north side of my home in an area where there was protection from wind and the soil had an acidic ph.  As for the sun the plant received 3 hours of full morning sun followed by 4 hours of the late afternoon sun. During the heat of the day, the shrub was protected with partial shade and this shade did not seem to hurt the rhododendron. (Rhododendron grow best when they get 6 hours of full sun daily)

In May I did weed the entire garden bed before applying a thick layer of hardwood mulch around the plants.  My summers are extremely hot so hoping the mulch will keep the roots cool and aid in retaining moisture.

Know that I did soak the root ball in water for one hour then let it drip dry for another hour before planting it in a hole that was 3 times the size of the root ball.  I planted it high so that the rainwater would drain off.  I also amended the fill-in soil with peat moss.  After planting I watered well, then did not water for 3-days.  The soil around the rhododendron didn’t dry out because I watered every 3-days for a month then only when water was needed.

The rhododendron bloomed this year and the flowers were brilliant. Here are some photographs.