Thank you all for your advice. What great folks! I will leave the top stuff alone to do its duty and will take all that rich looking stuff from the bottom. Actually, there's so much of it now that I'll be giving it away to my city friends who "rent" those community garden spaces to grow veggies. Now that I've wised up (thanks, everyone), I'll start adding other good stuff to the pile, like newspapers, cardboard, coffee grounds, etc. To think we've been taking those things to the recycling center all these years! Just giving it away, lol. One of my concerns was that there *might* be so much N in the compost that it would interfere with seed germination. But that's not the case and now I can go ahead and add the compost without any worries. I don't bag every time I mow; just this time of year when the grass and weeds are so thick that it would look like a hayfield if the cuttings are left on the lawn. Things just grow too fast and thick in the spring with all the rain. We don't use a lot of fertilizer, mostly because we are lazy AND forgetful. But we do use it on the heavy-feeders occasionally, while the plants that thrive on neglect almost never get any. Actually, I've found that keeping the roses in food prevents many of those fungal diseases, so they're the only ones that get any real attention in the form of fertilizer. This is better than resorting to sprays. But most plants simply don't need it; maybe once every year or two. Mostly I just put down some alfalfa meal in early spring and a little composted manure/humus. That keeps the plants happy. Oh yeah, potash. My soil is always testing very low on potash, so I add that once a year if it's needed. Thanks again, everyone!

My first thought was regarding concern for the branches with dead leaves, and how severe that was. A dead limb is often a sign of a problem near the crown of the plant. However, judging from what I can see in the photo, the plant does appear to be in good overall health and pruning out damaged branches is the right thing to do, as this will encourage new growth. However, you do want to be very reserved and selective about winter pruning. As for the blooming, encore azaleas have a Spring and Fall blooming cycle. Usually, a light pruning commonly referred to as "deadheading" is done after the Spring blooming begins to fade. This is done to keep the hormone levels in the plant from shifting. The blooming activity is part of the plants reproduction, so once the blooms fully mature and begin to fade, the plant is triggered to slow down the production of the bloom producing hormones. So once your flowers weather a bit, simply prune just below the first set of leaves nearest the bloom each Spring. This will improve your Fall blooming cycle significantly. Also, use your winter months to replenish the phosphate levels, which are usually depleted by heavy blooming cycles. I'm in the Atlanta area, but you're welcome to visit my webpage and link to the Facebook page. I keep an open log on Facebook with pests and problems I find in the field, and what can be done to avoid the problems. There are several photos with various pests that go after Azaleas. While lace bugs are the most common, my favorite is of a wooly aphid I found last Spring. Here is a link that might be useful: Serenity Lawn Service

Don't fertilize. It inhibits blooming. To bloom they need some sun around bloom time and on into early summer. That is when they are forming the new flower buds. Do not prune until after they bloom and then prune soon after they bloom since they will start forming the next years flower buds then. Drought also inhibits flower bud formation or will prevent flower buds from opening. Here are some more details. You will have to look to see if you have buds that didn't open, or if you never had buds. Failure to set flower buds may be a sign of too much health and vigor in a plant. One solution my be to prune the roots by cutting around the plant with a spade or moving the plant. This will check foliage growth and encourage production of flower buds. Application of nitrogen rich fertilizers are the main cause of vigor which suppresses flower bud production. Deadheading flowers as soon as they wilt can promote flower bud production. Too much shade, a cool wet summer, or inadequate phosphorus or potassium in the soil may also suppress flower bud production. There are a number of other reasons for a lack of flowers. The effect of each variable depends upon the variety of the plant. The effects include: Pruning. The buds are formed in late summer and early fall so pruning then or later is not advisable since it will remove flower buds. New leaf buds will form in the spring, but new flower buds won't form until the next year. Variety. Some plants will never bloom. Some azaleas that come from the seed of a hybrid plant will look good but will never produce flowers or will produce very poor flowers. To come true to the parent plant, a hybrid may be propagated by cuttings or tissue culture but not from seed. A good hybrid seedling only comes about once in a while. For that reason it is important to know that you are getting a good named variety or a good species. Fertilizing. Nitrogen promotes leaf and branch growth and discourages flower bud production. It can also force late season growth that gets killed or stunted by frost damage. Phosphorus promotes flower bud production and hardiness. Potassium is necessary for well being. Weather. Cold weather can kill flower buds. Usually you see the brown buds in the spring. Cold spells in the fall or spring can damage buds that are not hardened off. Bud blast (blooming in fall or winter) uses up good buds which are then not available at the normal blooming time. Age. Most azaleas take 2 to 3 years to bloom from a rooted cutting unless forced. Some take longer and some bloom sooner. From seeds the plant may take 1 or 2 additional years. Sun & Shade. Some azaleas need full sun to bloom and others can take fairly dense shade. In general, the more sun the more flower buds but also the greater exposure to damage from desiccation in summer or winter. More shade produces tall spindly foliage and less flowers. Inspection. You can usually tell if the plant has ever bloomed. A azalea that has bloomed will have the seed pods on it unless it has been dead-headed. If dead-headed too late after blooming, new flower buds can be damaged. There are many other cultural variables that influence the plant's health and hence, its ability to produce flowers. Failure of flower buds to open could be due to a number of reasons. On a mature plant if they ever bloomed they will have a few of the seed pods still here and there. If you can't find any old seed pods, then they may have never bloomed. In any case, here are a few suggestions that may help: Bud blast. Disease may attack the buds before they open. If it is a fungal infection, the dead bud will be covered with short hair-like structures. Bud set. The buds could be foliage buds rather than flower buds. In this case check the previous section about flower buds not setting. Fall Blooming. Some causes of fall blooming include a dry summer and moist fall and/or warmer climates including a warm fall. For some reason, fall blooming is more common in Georgia according to Dr. Sandra McDonald. Plants which are not sufficiently hardened off or are exposed to unseasonable warm spells can start bloom prematurely. These blooms are seldom satisfactory and many times get frozen before opening fully. In any case, the seasonal bloom is lost. Avoid application of nitrogen after late spring, but phosphorus and potassium may be applied during the growing season. Application of nitrogen too late in the season can hinder hardening off in the fall. Low temperatures. The buds could be flower buds that froze. Early frosts are especially destructive. Plants harden off progressively in the fall. If a frost occurs before hardening is complete, the frost can kill flower buds. Late frosts in the spring after dormancy is broken is also a problem. This is especially true of early bloomers such as PJM that break dormancy very early. Cold climates may be too cold for many azaleas. Most azaleas have a low temperature at which the flower buds are damaged and will not produce flowers. It varies greatly from variety to variety and somewhat from season to season. Flower buds can also be damaged by cold, dry winds, particularly when warm winter weather is followed by a period of bitter cold. Nutrients. Improper nutrients my be a problem that affects cold hardiness and flower bud set. A few things you can do are to fertilize with phosphorus (super-phosphate) per directions to increase hardiness and flower bud set. This can be done any time. Do not use nitrogen rich fertilizers as they may inhibit flower bud production and also reduce cold hardiness. Lawn fertilizers are notoriously high in nitrogen and should be kept away from flowering plants. Acidity. Measure the pH and acidify if necessary. Flowers of sulfur (powdered sulfur) or iron sulfate are the best chemicals to use to increase the acidity [lower the pH]. Do not use aluminum sulfate since aluminum salts build up in the soil and eventually becomes toxic to many plants including azaleas. If soil is too acid, the symptoms can be the same. Very acidic soil can prevent the roots from taking up nutrients. As many of my azaleas are planted in very acidic forest soil, an application of Dolomite and a light topdressing of mushroom manure in late spring is all they need. Sprinkle the lime on in late winter, very early spring. Don't overdo it - just a light sprinkle. If it is mid-spring, get the lime on right away so the azalea roots will be able to take up the soil nutrients in time for new growth. If you don't have rain, water it in well. Protection. If the plants are wrapped in burlap during the winter, they may gain a few more degrees in hardiness. Drought. When soil moisture is too low, the buds will not open as shown in photo on the right. Watering will usually resolve this condition if detected soon enough. Also, summer drought with a moist fall can contribute to fall blooming. Deer Damage. Deer and rabbits may eat many of the flower buds as they browse in the winter, particularly if the weather is harsh and other food is scarce.

I propagate my azaleas by lying a long stem of an azalea in the dirt. I scratch the stem to remove part of the woody covering to expose the green part of the stem. I then lay it down in the mulch or dirt and place a heavy rock on it. Within a few months, I cut it from the mother plant and carefully place the azaela in sandy potting soil to stimulate the roots. Keep the roots moist, and when the time is right plant it in the desired location. This works well will roses, clamatis, and boxwoods. I don't buy these plants anymore, I just make my own. I have 5-10 establishing roots now. Once I remove the "new" plant from its mother plant, I immediately start another one. The best thing about this process is that its free.