CLOSED: Azaleas in Virginia

I just finished reading some of ButterflyChaser's "Lots of Excess" thread and I will be forever grateful to her for a briliant idea. (I haven't been a member of the site long enough to read others who have done the same, so to you I apologize for not giving you the credit)

You are formally invited to Fredericksburg, VA to dig up my azaleas!

If you are interested, I have over 30 Azaleas that need new homes. The original owner really loved them but I really love having just a few. (There are over 60 total but I figure I have the energy to move at least 30 around the perimeter of the woods.) The remaining 30 are up for grabs if you live nearby or feel like a long road trip. They are 3ftx3ft aprox., some are larger but I'm sure they can all be pruned back to a manageable size for transport. I know they haven't been prunned for at least 3 years since the owners just before us didn't do much in the garden.

The azalea in the picture is what they all look like by color although there are two sizes of flowers big and floppy or small and dainty.

I wish I could tell you what kind they are but of course not a single plant in this place is labeled. I did find a piece of a tag under the mulch by one of the shrubs and it said 'Red Ruffles' if that rings a bell for anyone. Which ones belong to that tag is beyond me. (I'm mad because when I left our home in Colorado, every single plant was labeled and I even left a binder with info sheets for everything I put into the ground, I hate not knowing what things are.)

Whatever is left I will be taking to the annual plant swap here in October but I was mainly trying to avoid having to dig them up myself! (Yes, I'll admit it)

Feel free of course to ask any questions. I'm not asking for any trades but if you are feeling generous let me know, I might even come over to dig in your dirt!

-Garity

This message was edited Jun 25, 2005 9:53 AM

How gorgeous! And, it's so sweet of you to offer them here. Alas, I am a bit too far west for a jaunt to VA. I hope you find homes for them soon.

Hi garityann...i live in hopewell va. just south of richmond, we have just moved into a new house with no landscaping....we have great soil and a nice wooded area that i think would support azalea's well. i would be glad to come to f'burg and dig up as many of the plants as you would like to get rid of, but i am sorry to say that at the present time i don't have anything to trade back...we're starting to collect plants with the intentions of planting them in fall.. of course we can stay in touch and i could let you know of things i get as time goes on...please let me know if you're interested...obtw...we go to the beach mid july for a weeks vacation...so 4th of july would be convenient for me

Garity,

How tall are these plants? Do they just creep on the ground?

Brian

dvreed2- COME ON UP! I wasn't asking for anything in return. Anyone who comes to get some azaleas are already doing more than I could ask for!

Anytime is great for me. I just won't be around from Aug 11-18th and I know leaving my husband in charge during that time would only be dangerous since he'd give away all of my plants only so he could put in more lawn!

You mention the 4th, did you want to come on the 4th meaning Monday or the weekend, July 2 or 3rd? We will be doing the 4th of July stuff downtown all day Monday but Saturday or Sunday would work really well.

If you do come now mid-summer, just remember that these shrubs are going to need some TLC because of the heat to make it through transplanting stage. (ie. keeping the soil moist). If you are in a wooded area that shouldn't be very hard to do and yes, they will absolutely love it because that is what we are in and they just thrive in the acid soil.

You could always come after your beach trip as well and feel free to plan on taking as many as you want and make as many trips as you want. Let me know, but that weekend sounds great.

Kayaker--OOps! forgot to answer your post. Azaleas are woody shrubs can get pretty tall. There are some cultivars that are ground hugging but all of the ones that I have are upright. I have some that are well over 5 feet and 3ft wide but there are cultivars that get into the 10s of feet in height.

All of the ones that are up for grabs are evergreen with the flower coloring seen in the above picture (sorry about the quality, I was in a hurry) None are taller than 4ft or wider than 3ft. The smallest I think is about 2ft tall and 1ft wide.