From our perspective beneath the soil, water is a matter of life and breath. When overwatered, our root system is plunged into a perpetual flood. The saturated soil drives out the vital air pockets, and we begin to suffocate. Without oxygen, our fine root hairs—the primary structures for absorbing water and nutrients—start to rot and die. This creates a cruel irony: you are giving us too much water, yet we cannot drink because our mouths are drowning. Conversely, underwatering leaves us desperately thirsty. The soil becomes hard and pulls away from your container or the ground, and our roots cannot access the moisture we need. We become brittle and may shrink, unable to perform our duty of transporting hydration to the rest of the plant.
Our leaves are the most honest indicators of our distress. In the case of overwatering, the first sign is often a generalized yellowing, particularly in the older leaves nearer the base. This chlorosis occurs because the rotten roots cannot supply nutrients. The leaves may also feel soft, limp, and heavy, as if they are waterlogged themselves. They might droop not from a lack of water, but from the weight of their own sogginess and failing internal systems. If underwatered, our leaves tell a very different story. They become dry, brittle, and crispy to the touch. They will curl inward at the edges in a desperate attempt to reduce surface area and conserve water. The vibrant green fades to a dull, lifeless hue, and eventually, they will turn brown from the tips and margins inward before dropping prematurely.
Our stems act as the central plumbing system, and water issues directly affect our structural integrity. Under constant overwatering, the stems become soft, mushy, and weak. They may darken in color, taking on a black or brownish hue, a clear sign of the rot progressing upwards from the compromised roots. This softness makes us highly susceptible to breaking and unable to support the weight of our own foliage. When deprived of water, the opposite occurs. Our stems become woody, brittle, and inflexible. They lose their turgor pressure—the internal water pressure that keeps us upright—causing the entire branch structure to become stiff and prone to snapping easily in the wind or when handled.
For an azalea, our buds and flowers are our crowning glory, but they are also incredibly vulnerable. Overwatering stresses us to such a degree that we may abort our flower buds before they even open. The plant is in survival mode, shedding its most energy-intensive parts to focus on simply staying alive. Any flowers that do manage to bloom may appear distorted, spotted, or drop off with startling speed. Underwatering leads to a different floral disaster. The buds may form but fail to open properly, becoming dry and crumbly. Open flowers will wilt dramatically, their edges browning and scorching quickly under the sun as we cannot pull enough water to keep these delicate structures hydrated and cool.
