Azalea japonica 'FAVORITE' Japanese azalea

Favorite azalea is probably so favourite that it the American Azalea Society list of varieties it is entered 6 times, each time in a different group. And try google it. Poor chap will not find a single entry matching all words correctly. So let’s make this right.

Favorite is a Japanese azalea with soft, salmon pink, medium-sized flowers that come out in mid May and last for 2-3 weeks. The are borne at tips of predominantly upright branches which can be ideal if you wish to use this azalea for screening. Evergreen leaves are dark green, small and glossy.

Japanese azaleas can be clipped to shapes in early June. If so, do not use fertilizers enhancing growth rate. The size of new branches would get out hand and spoil the shape you are going to achieve. They need light, permeable soil that is acid, constantly moist (keep azaleas mulched at all times) and moderately fertile. Use fertilizers for rhododendrons and azaleas, or ericaceous plants. The best soil mix is 1/3 of peat, 1/3 of leaf-mould or lime-free compost, and 1/3 of soil from the hole where you are going to plant it. Azaleas have shallow roots, so do not plant not too deep. Hardy to about -26°C (USDA zone 5b).

Last update 17-01-2012