Here is a suggestion, Zach. After you make sure that the bush has an adequate supply of acidic mulch -about 3-4" up to the drip line-, I suggest that you test the soil moisture daily using the finger method. For about two weeks, insert a finger to a depth of 4" daily and determine how the soil feels. If these are large bushes, test in four different places every time. If they are small bushes, test in only one place. The idea is to get a general idea how the area under the drip line is doing. When the soil feels almost dry or dry then water; otherwise, do nothing. Each time you water, make a note in a wall calendar. At the end of the two weeks, observe how often you watered (every 3/4/5/etc days) by looking in the calendar. Then set the sprinkler to water 1 gallon of water on the same frequency. When temperatures change 10 degrees or more and stay there, use the finger method again. You should notice that watering frequency increases as we get closer to the mid summer months and is reduced in the Fall. During winter, you can reduce watering further to once every two weeks on dry winters when the ground does not freeze. Apply 1.5 gallons of your soil happens to be sandy soil. While testing the soil for moisture, be aware that azaleas have very shallow root systems on the top 4-6" of the soil. They do not like the roots to be disturbed much so be careful when working to add mulch, clean debris, insert fingers and stuff like that. An adequate supply of mulch should help the shrubs quite a bit. It will reduce the frequency of your waterings. It will keep the soil evenly moist. It will protect the shrubs on windy and dry times. And it will provide food for the azaleas. Generally speaking, if your soil does not have any mineral defficienies (determined by a soil test), you could let the azaleas feed off the decomposing mulch; no fertilizer needed. Except for an application of sulphur this time of the year, that is what I do with my shrubs. Just make a habit to add more mulch in Spring and Fall when more is needed. Luis

Currently your azalea is in good shape, with new foliage looking healthy. "make sure you water often, azaleas love water" Please don't follow these directions as the poster is in Houston TX and probably does fine with azaleas there, but this won't work in midwestern clay. As a former Ohioan, this will leave your azalea with roots deprived of oxygen from saturated soil. I would mulch around your azalea with wood chips which will help keep the ground evenly moist and will over time add organic matter. Don't put them right against the trunk, however; leave a few inches between the trunk and where the mulch starts. If you haven't had significant rain for more than a week, stick your finger down through the mulch into the soil around your azalea to feel whether it needs water. You don't want the rootball soggy, but you don't want to let it get really dry as it can be hard to get the grower's mix to rewet. You have chosen a reasonable spot for it where it gets good light, but shelter from the worst of the southern sun. This may help during the winter months. Keep your receipt and if/when it dies, get a refund. akamainegrower referred to "iron clad" rhododendrons. Your Roseum elegans is one of them. They have the potential to get huge, though, so it isn't a great foundation plant. If you can plant it in a spot where it gets lots of summer light, but a building or evergreen gives it shade with the winter sun angle, you will be less likely to get winter-burned foliage. Planting a bit high in clay, and then putting soil around the raised part of the rootball and mulch on top of that will help prevent drainage issues, since as the chips start to rot the roots will grow into the nice organic rich soil that is to its liking. You will need to renew the mulch every year or two. I didn't plant this roseum elegans (planted by PO), but it is 4' from ground level to the window sill, 12' to the gutter and the center of the plant is 6' from the house. The plant is about 20 years old.

Taken. Thanks!

I cut some back that were about 30 or 40 years old. They were about 5 feet tall. I cut them back to about 2 feet tall. They looked very scraggly for about 3 years, but are finally getting leafy again. From an interview with Parker Andes from Callaway Gardens: Pruning to Rejuvenate "This is probably my favorite job," said Parker. "When an azalea is way too tall or badly misshapen, if I see vigorous growth at the base, I know I can make it look ten times better in a minute or two." He demonstrated on an old azalea that resembled a leafy umbrella standing in the woods. There were several sprouts at the base, struggling to reach the sunshine blocked by the leaves above. With three cuts, the azalea went from six feet tall to eighteen inches high. Here is a link that might be useful: Azaleas Summer Pruning