Characteristics
| Hardiness zone | 6a |
|---|---|
| Flower color | salmon |
| Foliage type | evergreen |
| Plant form | upright spreading |
| Mature height | 4 feet |
| Spread | 5 feet |
| Light requirements | full sun to partial shade |
| Moisture requirements | moist |
| Plant origin | hybrid |
Fashion Azalea
Botanical name: Rhododendron ‘Fashion’
An interesting variety with lovely salmon blooms accented by reddish-purple spots; blooms in early to mid spring, creating an impressive border or low screen; absolutely must have well-drained, highly acidic and organic soil.
Ornamental Features
Fashion Azalea is covered in stunning clusters of lightly-scented salmon trumpet-shaped flowers with purple spots at the ends of the branches from early to mid spring. It has dark green foliage which emerges coppery-bronze in spring. The small glossy narrow leaves remain dark green throughout the winter. The fruit is not ornamentally significant.
Landscape Attributes
Fashion Azalea is an open multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its relatively coarse texture can be used to stand it apart from other landscape plants with finer foliage.
This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and should only be pruned after flowering to avoid removing any of the current season's flowers. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Fashion Azalea is recommended for the following landscape applications;
Accent, Mass Planting, General Garden Use
Planting and Growing
Fashion Azalea will grow to be about 4 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 5 feet. It tends to be a little leggy, with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 40 years or more.
This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It requires an evenly moist well-drained soil for optimal growth, but will die in standing water. It is very fussy about its soil conditions and must have rich, acidic soils to ensure success, and is subject to chlorosis (yellowing) of the leaves in alkaline soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution, and will benefit from being planted in a relatively sheltered location. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.
