Question
I received an azalea plant at my husband's funeral on 8/17.  I kept the plant indoors because of Texas heat (over 95 degrees), but put it on shady front porch when temperature dropped to 88 a wk ago.
Pot: 6" diameter, 6" depth.  Plant is 8" tall.  Had many pink flowers, now drying up, falling off.  How do I care for it and feed it? When do I repot it?  Should I keep it indoors or outdoors in fall temp of 60-75 degrees.   How long does it stay in a pot; when can I transplant it to my front yard  (yard is under shady tree, diffused light).
Also received a kalanchoe and a bromeliad plant, same pot size as the azalea, asking for basic care instructions for these plants.  Kalanchoe flowers are still blooming, not drying or falling off; bromeliad plant looks the same as the day I got it on 8/17.  Thanks so much for your help, would like to keep these plants growing in honor of my husband.

Answer
Hi Margaret,

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Thanks,
Will Creed



Hi Margaret,

I am sorry that you have recently lost your husband. My condolences to you and other family members.

I will do my best to give you good advice on caring for these special plants, but do remember that plants are perishable and even the most experienced of us lose plants from time-to-time.

Azaleas love cool temps and fresh air. They do best outside in the warmer months, but should be protected from temps above 80 degrees. Indoors they need lots of light, cool temps, and soil that is kept constantly moist, but not left standing in water. Even a single episode of drought can do it in casing the leaves to dry up. Keep it in its existing pot indefinitely. Fertilize with an acid-based fertilizer when it is growing actively. The flower buds are formed in the summer and are much larger than leaf buds.

It is best to keep the plant in a semi-shady cool place outdoors in summer. However planting it permanently outside in the Texas heat is probably not a good idea. Cool temps of about 50 degrees in the winter are important for setting buds. So let it stay outdoors until the temperatures are close to freezing. Then bring it indoors and put in a sunny window. Prune it back by about one-third following its spring blooming period, particularly long stems without many leaves.

Flowering Kalanchoes are often discarded after they have finished flowering because they are difficult to re-bloom in the home. They require a 3 month period during which they must have 16 hours of complete darkness and 8 hours of bright light every 24 hours with a 10 degree drop in temperature at night. Not easy to do.

If you want to keep your Kalanchoe as a foliage plant, keep it pinched back so it doesn't get leggy. Don't repot it; allow the soil to dry out between waterings; fertilize sparingly; and keep it on a warm sunny windowsill. Over watering and repotting are the two most common problems with this plant.

Kalanchoes must have bright indirect sunlight all day with a few hours of early or late day direct light. A minimum of 4 hours of direct sun every day is essential for flowering. Do not repot it and avoid fertilizer for the first year! It is a succulent and likes dry soil, but will not go for a long time without any water as a cactus will. It prefers warm temps, never below 60 degrees. To extend flower life, provide temps in the 50 to 70 degree range. It is a 搒hort- day?plant that will flower at any time of the year. However, to set buds it must have at least 16 hours of completely dark nights for 3 months. This is more than most owners can manage. That is why this is often used as a throw-away?plant that is discarded after it finishes flowering.

Bromeliads are in the same family as pineapples and Spanish moss. They are "monocarpic." That means they die after flowering. The death is a slow one, often taking up to 3 years. In the interim, 1 to 3 offsets (called babies or pups) are produced to carry on the species.

Keep your bromeliad in a small (5 to 6") pot and place it on a north or east windowsill where it will get lots of bright, mostly indirect light. If it is properly potted, a weekly thorough watering will be just right. The soil should be quite dry before watering. The customary practice of keeping the cups filled with water has been discredited because indoors, where air circulation is poor, the cups often rot. Keep the soil barely damp and it will not be necessary to water the cups. Fertilize at half strength during the warmer months.

The pups can be left on the mother plant or they can be severed and potted up separately. If you choose the latter, then wait until the pups are about one-third to one-half the size of the mother. This takes about 6 to 9 months.

Remove the soil where the pup attaches to the mother plant. Most of the time the pup can be pulled away from the mother with a firm but gentle tug. Otherwise, cut the pup low on the woody part of the stem that attaches the pup to the mother. Allow the severed pup to sit in the open air (out of the sun) for a day before potting it. Pot the severed pup in a small pot filled with a mix of peat moss and perlite. Keep this mix damp and place it in bright light away from direct sunlight. Keep temps above 65 degrees. You may want to place it inside a clear plastic bag to help maintain high humidity for the first month after it is potted up.

I hope I haven't overwhelmed you with information here! Please let me know if any of this is unclear or if you have any additional questions.

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Regards,
Will Creed, Interior Landscaper
Horticultural Help, NYC

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