Encore Azaleas
Posted by nurseryman at 4/2/2011 8:18 PM 
Categories: Gardening, Truth, Nurseries, Competition, Products, Retail nursery
Categories: Gardening, Truth, Nurseries, Competition, Products, Retail nursery
Azaleas have been the premiere evergreen flowering shrub in Houston for many decades. We have sold all of the popular old varieties since 1973. In 1997 one of our suppliers, Flowerwood Nursery from Mobile Alabama, introduced the Encore Azalea series . We were told that all Encore's would re-bloom in the Fall season. We jumped on the bandwagon immediately and brought in every variety that they offered at the time. I believe that we were the first retail garden center in the Houston area to carry them. At the time Flowerwood Nurseries was the only grower of Encore Azaleas.
I use to travel to Mobile every January and tour Flowerwood Nurseries. I would talk to Keith Winger, our salesperson, about plants, varieties and everything concerning business horticulture in the Southeastern US. He had an amazing amount of knowledge of plants and the people. I told him that some of my customers were told by my competition that Encore Azaleas didn't grow well here in Houston. I told him which nurseries allegedly made those statements. He said that one of those nurseries could not get credit with them and the other had never bought anything from them. Since the Encore's were just introduced I took all comments from their detractors with a grain of salt.
It is now fourteen years later and I have much more experience and knowledge of Encore Azaleas and how well they do here in Houston. I have come to a simple conclusion. If you can't grow the older varieties of azaleas you won't have any better luck with the Encore's. If you don't water them well in the summer they will suffer and die. If your soil is not acidic enough any azalea will be chlorotic and yellow. If you place them in an extremely low light area they will not be able to be lush with foliage and will be sparse in bloom. They are azaleas and require what azaleas require. I have them in my front yard and they are lush and in full flower. They get all the morning sun but shade after 1pm in the summer. I fertilize them with MicroLife for Azaleas. A great product for you organic gardeners.
What spurred this blog was an exchange of information from 2 ladies in my nursery this week. One lady was in the Encore area and had loaded some on a cart. Another lady mentioned to her that she heard from another nursery in our area that they didn't grow well here. The customer told her that she had been growing Encore's for years and had great success with them. That's why she was buying more. She convinced the other lady to actually buy some. WINNING! lol
Here is what I think happened. Nurseries in my area couldn't or wouldn't carry the Encore's. Customers asked for them and their excuse for not having them was fabricated. They don't do well here. We are saving you from making a mistake. We are the good guys. I have a customer, Pat Koester, that extolls the virtues of Encore azaleas. She has grown them with success in Lakewood Forest and High Meadow Ranch for 13 years now. Pat told me she spoke to the owner or manager of these nurseries and confirmed to them that they do well here. They did not want to hear that from Pat. It seems odd that those nurseries would have negative first hand information about plants that they never carried, Amazing actually. I really feel bad for what they did to themselves. They fouled the water with an untruth and now can't admit to what actually happened and start selling the hottest selling azaleas around. It's a tangled web they have created. Lying to customers is a dead end. We plan never to go down that road.
I use to travel to Mobile every January and tour Flowerwood Nurseries. I would talk to Keith Winger, our salesperson, about plants, varieties and everything concerning business horticulture in the Southeastern US. He had an amazing amount of knowledge of plants and the people. I told him that some of my customers were told by my competition that Encore Azaleas didn't grow well here in Houston. I told him which nurseries allegedly made those statements. He said that one of those nurseries could not get credit with them and the other had never bought anything from them. Since the Encore's were just introduced I took all comments from their detractors with a grain of salt.
It is now fourteen years later and I have much more experience and knowledge of Encore Azaleas and how well they do here in Houston. I have come to a simple conclusion. If you can't grow the older varieties of azaleas you won't have any better luck with the Encore's. If you don't water them well in the summer they will suffer and die. If your soil is not acidic enough any azalea will be chlorotic and yellow. If you place them in an extremely low light area they will not be able to be lush with foliage and will be sparse in bloom. They are azaleas and require what azaleas require. I have them in my front yard and they are lush and in full flower. They get all the morning sun but shade after 1pm in the summer. I fertilize them with MicroLife for Azaleas. A great product for you organic gardeners.
What spurred this blog was an exchange of information from 2 ladies in my nursery this week. One lady was in the Encore area and had loaded some on a cart. Another lady mentioned to her that she heard from another nursery in our area that they didn't grow well here. The customer told her that she had been growing Encore's for years and had great success with them. That's why she was buying more. She convinced the other lady to actually buy some. WINNING! lol
Here is what I think happened. Nurseries in my area couldn't or wouldn't carry the Encore's. Customers asked for them and their excuse for not having them was fabricated. They don't do well here. We are saving you from making a mistake. We are the good guys. I have a customer, Pat Koester, that extolls the virtues of Encore azaleas. She has grown them with success in Lakewood Forest and High Meadow Ranch for 13 years now. Pat told me she spoke to the owner or manager of these nurseries and confirmed to them that they do well here. They did not want to hear that from Pat. It seems odd that those nurseries would have negative first hand information about plants that they never carried, Amazing actually. I really feel bad for what they did to themselves. They fouled the water with an untruth and now can't admit to what actually happened and start selling the hottest selling azaleas around. It's a tangled web they have created. Lying to customers is a dead end. We plan never to go down that road.
Great blog Victor. I have been guilty of that as well but because I was apparently misinformed. Way back when I first got in the business I wanted to carry them but had a couple of experienced landscapers and a few customers in the Woodlands tell me they had tried them several times with very little success. I visited with Chuck Winger as well and told him what they said. He told me they were not caring for them properly. I wasn't buying from Flowerwood at the time and the only thing I was interested in were the Encores. Based on my limited sampling I blew them off and have never heard any other comments, good or bad until now. I will have to make some space for them in my nursery and try them again. Thanks Victor.
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Chance Alldredge with Greenleaf is who got Houston Plants & Garden World to start selling them again. The consumer response has been great and I think we made a great decision in carrying them again.
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Stephanie...we have been carring them for a few years. Greenleaf has made it easier to get a wider selection.
Victor...you are so right. They are azalea's. You have to be able to grow an azalea. Great blog.
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My wife and I bought a couple azaleas from you and after putting them in, my sister said, "Azaleas don't grow well in Houston." I took that as a challenge, and I am determined to prove her wrong, or at least that I am a superior gardener. After planting them, they lost the blooms that came with them and I thought I would have to admit defeat. This week, the blooms came back and I am optimistic about having a fragrant, and beautiful front walk in the future.
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Let your sister know that every spring Houston has the Bayou Bend Azalea Trail tours and has every year since...forever, Because Azaleas do so well and are beautiful here. You also get great history of Houston and the Bayou Bend area on the tour.
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Hi:
I have tried growing both encore and pride of mobile azaleas in houston at two of my homes without any luck. My present home is on a large lot, with semi-shade and very rich soil (we live one block from bray's bayou so historic floods have given us rich soil unlike most of the clay around here). With both species, I planted and fertilized and kept watered regularly. This latest time with the Pride of Mobile azaleas, I bought 24 of them. All 24 died. The leaves would just turn brown. I thought is was lace bugs, which are common and produce similar look on the leaves, so i treated them with pesticide. Still no better. Some of the plants would be fine and healthy, with ones next to them dying or dead. One several occassions, they would be healthy and then it would rain and the next day they would appear dead as a doornail... I'm from MS where we have azaleas 10 ft high and you can lay a brick on a limb and it will root. I really don't get what I am doing wrong here. Any advice?
Thanks!
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Jon, first thing would be to get a pH meter to check the pH of your soil. You need to be between 5.5-6.0 To acidify (bring the number down) use soil sulfur or aluminum sulphate. I do believe that your real issue is watering/drainage. Azaleas don't like wet feet but they do need to be kept watered well in the summer. Watering thoroughly and not repeating until the soil starts to dry is the best method. Not frequent, shallow waterings. Fertilize with Microlife for azaleas...awesome azalea food.
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I am European and have needed help with the Texas plants and insects. Your salesman who is your tree expert has helped me with many of my silly problems. I am always traveling and the help is much needed! I will continue to visit your store for plants and advice and I am thanking your salesman Russell for patient help with me! Also the gift shop is very nice place to cool off
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