calculatemygarden
Units

Azalea Spacing Calculator

How far apart to plant azaleas, and how many fit your bed, row or area.

Units
In the row
3 to 5 ft
ft

Published for Azalea: 3 to 5 ft.

Where you plant
Pattern
ft
More optionsEdge margin
Space at the edge

Half a spacing keeps each plant inside the row ends, so neighbours in the next bed are still a full spacing away. Plant on the edge when the plants may spread past it, such as the first and last post of a hedge line.

Azaleas for this row length

12plants

0.24 per foot of row.
Top view, 50 × 4 ft. Each circle is the space one plant gets.
Plants per sq ft
0.06
Plants per acre
2,722
Plants per hectare
6,727
Ground per plant
16sq ft
Ground covered
200sq ft

How these numbers are worked out

In a square pattern the rows are one spacing apart, so each plant takes spacing × spacing of ground.

4 ft × 4 ft = 16 sq ft per plant

43,560 sq ft per acre ÷ 16 sq ft = 2,723 plants per acre

Per-area figures ignore the edges. The count for a bed, row or circle places each one, so it is usually a little lower. One acre is 43,560 sq ft; one hectare is 10,000 m².

How far apart to plant azaleas

UF/IFAS Extension spaces azaleas 3 to 5 feet apart, adding that the ideal spacing depends on the mature size of the cultivar. The calculator starts at 4 ft, the middle of that range.

Clemson Cooperative Extension gives a simple rule for mixed plantings: add the mature spreads of two neighbors and divide by two. An azalea that spreads 4 ft next to a shrub that spreads 6 ft goes 5 ft away.

How many azaleas for a row or border

Row lengthAt 4 ftPlants on both ends
10 ft23
25 ft67
50 ft1213
100 ft2526

The calculator's default keeps half a spacing clear at each end of the row, which gives the first column. To start and finish with a plant right on the ends, open More options and set the edge to "None, plant on the edge". A double staggered border of 100 ft (pattern Triangular (staggered), 2 rows) takes 49 azaleas at 4 ft.

For a mass planting instead of a row, choose Bed or Area: at 4 ft on a square grid each azalea takes 16 square feet.

Spacing by azalea group

Azalea groups differ widely in size, so pick the group before the spacing:

  • Kurume hybrids are mostly low to medium shrubs of 2 to 3 ft, a few reaching 5 to 6 ft (University of Georgia Extension). The close end of the range suits them.
  • Gable hybrids grow about 2 to 4 ft tall and wide (Clemson).
  • Glenn Dale hybrids grow 4 to 6 ft tall and 3 to 4 ft wide (Clemson).
  • Southern Indian hybrids are large, 5 to 8 ft tall and 5 to 10 ft wide (University of Georgia), so use the wide end of the range or more.

Using Clemson's rule, two Gable azaleas with a 3 ft spread go 3 ft apart, while two Southern Indian azaleas that spread 8 ft need 8 ft, well past the 5 ft top of the general range.

Planting azaleas

Clemson says the top of the root ball should be level with or slightly higher than the ground, never lower, because azaleas are shallow rooted and a buried root ball stays wet and invites disease. UF/IFAS gives the same advice: plant at or above the depth the shrub grew in its container.

Fall planting is best in Clemson's view, since the shrub settles in before the next summer's heat; in Florida, UF/IFAS names November to February as the best transplanting season, and container azaleas can go in at any time they can be watered. UF/IFAS recommends well-drained, organic soil with a pH of 4.5 to 5.5.

Related tools

To mulch the new bed, the mulch calculator gives the bags or cubic yards. For a mixed shrub border, compare spacings in the hedge spacing calculator, and see hydrangea spacing for another flowering shrub.