Alternate name: Mountain Azalea, Piedmont Azalea, Sweet Azalea

Family: Ericaceae, Heath view all from this family

Description This deciduous azalea is a many-branched, spreading shrub 10-15 ft. tall with clusters of white to deep-rose, funnel-shaped flowers in clusters of 6-15 from February to May. The flowers, with protruding stamens, exude a delicate fragrance and usually appear before the thin, velvety, elliptic leaves.

Warning Azalea leaves and flowers contain poisonous substances and should not be ingested by humans or animals. Honey made from these flowers also may be toxic. Sensitivity to a toxin varies with a person’s age, weight, physical condition, and individual susceptibility. Children are most vulnerable because of their curiosity and small size. Toxicity can vary in a plant according to season, the plant’s different parts, and its stage of growth; and plants can absorb toxic substances, such as herbicides, pesticides, and pollutants from the water, air, and soil.

Habitat Moist woods on coastal plains; open fields; steambanks.

Range Coastal plain and piedmont from North Carolina to Florida and Texas.

Discussion This is the most common native azalea in the Southeast. It tends to form large colonies and hybridizes readily with other species in the genus.