Encores are not always in bloom. They bloom -as expected- in Spring and then produce two more flushes (smaller ones for me) during the growth season. Expect another flush in June-July (or so) and then a final one in September. I only fertilize in early spring and only sometimes. Estabished azaleas feed off the decomposing mulch; that is all they need. Watering can be done using the finger method. If the soil feels almost dry to a depth of 4" then water the soil with about 1g of water early in the morning (you can water manually, use a sprinkler or drip irrigation). And yes, yellow leaves could be a moisture issue but it could also be a host of other things as well. That includes planted too low and old leaves about to die. If you have just a few, that is ok. But if it is a lot then that needs to be researched further. Signs of trouble for me would include: a lot of leaves yellowing or leaves yellowing only in certain parts (the top of the shrub only, say).

I noticed that I forgot to paste a link on my prior msg... I was also going to let you know of another reblooming series of azaleas recently introduced called Bloom-A-Thon, sold in pots by Proven Winners and Monrovia. It claims that the flowers last very long (4-6 weeks). I have not heard from others who can confirm as they have only recently been available in larger numbers. Usually, the first flush in Spring is the largest and best so it would be interesting to see how these "behave". They claim several flushes throughout the growing season; my Encores sometimes skip blooming in the summer if it is unusually hot. There are several colors in the BAT Series but white is the smallest. In your zone and mine, azaleas may get a tad bigger than their stated size (an estimate) due to our longer growing season. So take the BAT and Encore Size Estimates as estimates. If you decide that reblooming is not too important, check some of the Bollywood Azaleas (small, blooms once but are variegated). Here is a link that might be useful: Encores by size This post was edited by luis_pr on Sat, Mar 30, 13 at 4:11

Talk to your GA county extension agent at 1-800-ASKUGA-1 Encores need at least 4 hours of sun to bloom. You will need to water a lot the first year, though. The Encore Azalea web site has information that will help: http://www.encoreazalea.com Click on the "Care Tips" link. Please also read the section at the bottom on Oklahoma and Texas. The part about clay soil may apply to you. You should be able to get milled pine bark (also sold as Soil Conditioner at garden centers)to work into the soil. You may be able to buy it in bulk. Make sure it has low wood content in the pine bark. Any wood content in the bark will rob nitrogen from the soil. If you buy it in bags, smell it when you open the bag. If there is a heavy turpentine odor, there is probably too much wood content. The more organic matter you can work into the soil the better water retention you will have. Over time the organic matter will break down, so the more you put in now, the longer your azaleas will last. You will also need to keep a thick layer of mulch to keep the sun from baking the moisture out of the dirt. The pine bark will be excellent for this also. Test the soil for proper pH. You may need to add sulfer. There is also a link for the Encore Collection. If you click on the flower you will get the height and spread of the various bushes. Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.encoreazalea.com

I'm rethinking the azaleas I chose. They were ata nursery, and had no tags on them, the nursery was going to move to another state and everyone was buying out the plants. Lucky me no one bothered the azaleas. Their were 10 perfect ones, no tags though. All 100% condition I picked them carefully because theyre were orange, purple, white, pink, orange, and red. I'm sure they must be encore's I'm looking at the bush now, and see more pink buds forming atleast 1/3 of the bush is covered in the buds, I see some other buds that are brown, possibly for next year. 2 of the buds opened today, very happy.