Rate of nitrogen application during the growing season alters the response of container-grown rhododendron and azalea to foliar application of urea in the Autumn

Abstract

SummaryOne-year-old rhododendron (Rhododendron ‘H-1 P.J.M’) and azalea (Rhododendron ‘Cannon’s Double’) plants grown at different nitrogen (N) fertilisation rates were used to assess the influence of soil N applications during the growing season, and foliar applications of urea in the Autumn, on N uptake and accumulation, and plant growth in the following Spring. N uptake efficiency declined linearly during the first growing season with an increasing rate of N fertilisation. For both cultivars, foliar urea application in the Autumn significantly increased plant N content without affecting plant size, regardless of plant N status. Leaves of rhododendron accumulated more N than other plant structures. Plants sprayed with foliar urea in the Autumn had more new growth the following Spring than plants receiving no urea, regardless of whether the plants received fertiliser in the Spring. For azalea, N uptake in the Spring was, in general, not affected by applications of urea during the previous year. For rhododendron, urea application in the Autumn decreased N uptake the following Spring. For both cultivars, increasing N availability during the growing season increased the ratio of above-ground to below-ground dry weight. Our results suggest that combining optimum N applications during the growing season with foliar application of urea in the Autumn can improve N uptake efficiency, increase N storage, and optimise growth in Rhododendron.