Rhododendron - will not flower?

waterwatereverywhere

Hi

We have a rhododendron (Spelling?) in the garden which refuses to flower. For the last couple of years it seems to get flower buds and looks as though it will flower but fails to follow through...!

As far as we can tell the plant looks healthy enough though the leaves are a bit pale in colour. It's in a shady part of the garden that gets sun in the mornings.

Please does anyone have any tips on what we could do to encourage it to flower or is it situated in the wrong place, does it need full on sun?

Many thx.

WestonDave

Soil possibly too alkaline? I suspect sun isn't the problem - I've seen feral ones flower quite happily in woods where they get very little sun light. However they are lime hating so you may need to increase the acidity of their soil. Try giving them a heavy mulch of ground up bark (you can buy this as composted bark), - it won't be an instant fix but over maybe 12 months to 2 years if kept up will gradually leach the acid from the bark into the soil.

bromsgrovebarry

Rhododendrons can abort flower buds if they fail to get enough moisture in late summer when the flower buds for next year are developing. The larger leaved Rhododendrons are woodland plants and prefer shade, smaller types with smaller leaves usually prefer full sun. Mulching with an acidic material like bark or conifer litter wil help conserve soil moisture in summer.

waterwatereverywhere

Hi

Many thanks for the useful tips - I will give this a go and fingers crossed it will start to bloom again ....I love the flowers on these.