How To Prune Azaleas: Give Old Plants New Life - The Kitchen Garten

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Azaleas, those early spring bloomers, are beautiful when in bloom, but do require pruning at the proper time. Not sure how to prune azaleas or even if your old azaleas are worth pruning? I’ve got you covered!

Cutting back azalea bushes to get healthy, new growth is simple and beneficial for your plants. No matter if your azaleas are only a few years old, or have been in your yard for decades like mine, your azalea plant will thank you and you’ll have healthy plants the following year if you’ll just do some simple pruning.

Why Prune Azaleas?

What shrub erupts into beautiful blooms for several weeks in the spring then instantly reverts back into a boring shrub? That’s right, the azalea. Being from the south, I have a bit of allegiance to this classic southern plant.

But let me tell you, when they’re done blooming, but still holding onto wilting brown flowers, they can be tough to love. Not to mention that many older homes, including ours, have yards slap-full (that’s a technical term) of these temporarily pretty plants.

Pruning azaleas, like most other plants, allows you to cut away any diseased branches, random tall shoots, and old wood that may make your azaleas look leggy. Pruning also helps shape up azaleas, but also gives sufficient time for the plant to produce new buds for next year if pruned at the right time.

The Best Time to Prune Azalea Plants

As with most plants, knowing when to cut back azaleas is important. And the answer is similar for many plants and shrubs. Immediately after blooming is the best time to cut back or trim azaleas.

Cutting back right after blooming is finished gives the gardener a chance to get the dead blooms off of the plant and to shape up the shrub. This will typically be in late spring once the blooms have all died off.

Can you prune azaleas later in the growing season? Yes, but if you wait and prune the azalea later in the year, such as fall or winter, there’s a chance that you will prune off next year’s flower buds.

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How to Shape Up Azaleas

If your azaleas are younger or have lots of new growth coming in, then chances are they just need light prunings. Here are some helpful steps for minimal pruning on azaleas after the spring bloom:

• Begin by deciding the shape for your azalea plant. Remember, they are not boxwoods that can take any super structured shape. Azaleas are “softer” and should be rounded in their natural form.
• Use a good pair of hand pruners and trim off any limbs that extend beyond the shape of the bush.
• Remove any dead limbs from the azalea and check for any diseased leaves.
• Trim a bit, then take step back to make sure the bush is shaping up the way you want.

Repeat this process until the shrub is the shape you’d like without any straggly limbs sticking out. This process can be repeated later in the year, but be wary of cutting off any buds that will bring next year’s flowers.

Cutting Back Old Azaleas (Hard Pruning)

But what if you have those old azalea shrubs? The trouble with older azaleas begins with their shape. They’re hard to shape up without having bare spots and noticeable holes. The fact that I can see the side of our house through the plant below is a problem. Years of trimming and shaping have left leaves just on the ends of branches and no real fullness to the shrub.

If you’re not sure how to do a severe pruning on azaleas, you can certainly trim here and there to shape them up. But a rejuvenation pruning, or a hard pruning, is going to be the best method for restoring beautiful azalea plants.

Unlike other flowering plants, such as the hydrangea, azaleas don’t need yearly cutting back. (See my full post on Why and How to Prune Hydrangeas.) But if your azaleas could benefit from a fresh start, then this is a great time to do it.

Here’s what you’ll need for a hard pruning on azalea plant:

• Garden Gloves
• Pruning Saw (Try this Fiskar’s Pruning Saw!)
• Pruning Shears (There are some of my favorite pruning shears)
• Optional: Electric hedge trimmers (not my preference, but to each his own!)

How to Hard Prune Azaleas

I’d like to say that the process was super complicated, but it really is quite simple.

1. Use pruning saw to cut down large azalea limbs to just 4-6 inches above ground level. Make sure your pruning saw is clean before you begin, and make smooth cuts.
2. Use pruning shears to trim back any small limbs still attached to the base of the plant.
3. Cut each subsequent azalea to the same height so they all grow back evenly.

The bonus of cutting any plant back this far is the ease of cleaning up any vines and weeds growing up around the shrub. You can see that my azaleas are still healthy by the color of the cut sides. No dead wood here.

Now, waiting for your azaleas to grow back may take some time. I cut these particular azaleas back over a year ago. Though you will begin to see new growth just weeks after cutting back, patience is key. The wait is worth it! See our old azaleas below.

The results are not too shabby considering these azaleas are quite old (50 years or more). It didn’t cost me anything (but labor) to have what looks like new plants growing in our side yard. I know our next door neighbors are glad they’ve grown back.

I’m sure they’d given up all hope of ever seeing a nice looking bed on their side of our house. Some azaleas I’ll choose to dig up simply for some variety in our yard, but overall, I’m very pleased that these grew back so healthy and full.

I’d love to know if you’ve had success pruning azaleas or other shrubs to give them new life! Be sure to check out my other azalea resources:

• The Best Soil for Acid-Loving Azaleas and Rhododendrons
• Are Encore Azaleas Perennial Plants?
• How to Care for Azaleas : Helpful tips to keep your azaleas looking lovely and producing blooms!

Happy Gardening!

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