Hello, workingmomx3. I had a severe lace bug infestation two years ago and most of my leaves had a frosted look to them but the azaleas normally flowered the following year. The reason is that lace bugs suck the juices (chlorophyl) from the underside of leaves in the spring. They are not terribly interested in flower buds because these lack chlorophyl. When mid-summer arrived, I made sure that the plants were well-wattered so flower bud production would not be affected. For those reasons, I doubt that your lace bug infestation would cause you to get no flowers this year; something else could though. The thing to determine is if your plants developed flower buds or not.

In your comments, you stated that 'there are no buds' when talking about the plants' leaves. Did you mean that there are no leaf buds or that there are no flower buds?

If you have no flower buds, one of these things could be the cause: (1) pruning azaleas after flower buds develop in mid-summer (do you remember pruning after July 2006?), (2) very young plants take 2-4 years to bloom from seed (are you grwoing these plants from seed or did you purchase them from a nursery?), (4) premature blooming during the fall and winter (caused by the weather) can use up the flower buds, (5) lack of sun can promote little flower production, (6) too much nitrogen fertilizer around the plant can keep the plant in growing mode at times it should be developing flower buds (use no fertilizers on azaleas and keep lawn fertilizer away from them).

If you got flower buds then freakish weather can delay blooming, flower buds could have been eaten by pests (deer, squirrel and rabbits), lack of moisture could keep the flower buds from opening, or early or severe cold weather could have killed the flower buds (but you should see browned out buds now).

Let us know if you did or did not get flower buds,
Luis

Thank you very much Luis!

I guess I just needed to be a bit more patient. My azaleas were very slow in getting started. They finally began blooming last week (mid-May). I believe the weird winter weather we had may have stressed them a bit. OTOH, the azaleas next to the house have not bloomed. I did some minor shaping just after blooming last spring...these ones were getting a bit straggly...but not any later than mid-June.

These were planted in September 2003, so they are fairly well established. Perhaps it's a combination of the weird weather and the fact that these azaleas are a bit more shaded up against the north east side of the house. They only get morning sun.

Again, thank you. I truly appreciate those who take the time to respond with useful information.

My December blooming camellias were affected by the weather and did not bloom until March. Talk about weird weather...

After treating for lacebugs, will all the damaged leaves ever recover to a healthy green color? If not, what is the best method for achieving a full recovery; should I cut the plant back to allow for all new regrowth? Then I would monitor and spray the new regrowth regularly to avoid a reoccurance. I am new at owning azaleas and they are as old as the house, 16 years old. I am not sure what type they are, but I have three of them and they bloom white.