Satsuki Azalea Potting Mixture

[Waffles]

A family member recently got me a Azalea as a graduation gift, it's low on soil, in a poor pot, and is pretty loose. Despite that it seems to be in fairly good health, but when I asked them about the soil mixture they didn't really know anything about it (Inquired about acidic mixture). I want to re-pot it ASAP but want a good mixture first. Right now I have some crushed volcanic rock, cactus soil, peat moss, and Perlite. Will these ingredients be adequate in sustaining my Azalea well enough, in the right mixtures?

[Gnome]

Waffles,

I'm not sure that I would re-pot an Azalea at this time of year, next spring would really be safer. Being loose in the pot leads me to think that it may have only been potted this year, another reason to not disturb it now.

Don't worry about not liking the pot, there will be plenty of time in the future for a new one. You can add a little more soil to the pot if necessary but it is best to keep it similar to the old soil for now.

Norm

[kdodds]

Agreed, which probably means a more organic mixture. Any more acidic mix should work for you at least temporarily until you can repot next year, but there are azalea soils, which would probably do very well for you.

[luis_pr]

Some time ago I saw potting mix at Lowe's for acidic plants, Waffles; it should be fine if you can still find it where you live. Any peat based mix should be fine too. If you are going to leave it outside all the time, including during winter, consider doing so only if it is hardy two Zones from what yours is. The peat based potting mixes should be replaced regularly since they tend to get hard with time; every 2-3 years for example.