SCIENTIFIC NAME: Azalea x 'Fashion'

COMMON NAME: Fashion Azalea

GARDEN SIZE: 3 feet tall x 4 feet wide (up to 5 feet tall and 6 feet wide in warmer zones)

GROWTH RATE: Moderate

USDA ZONE: 6 to 9

EXPOSURE: Part Sun.

WATER & SOIL: Keep soil moist but well-drained (no wet feet); prefers humus-rich, acidic soil. Avoid heavy clay.

HABIT (FORM): Bushy, dense, mounding, and rounded

FOLIAGE: Evergreen; medium to dark green foliage with alternate, simple leaves that are elliptic with entire margins

FLOWERS: Salmon-orange to red blooms; single, "hose-in-hose" flowers (2-2.5 inches); blooms in spring, with some reblooming potential in fall

PLANT ORIGIN: Hybrid

WILDLIFE SUPPORT: May provide some nesting sites and shelter for birds and small mammals, but does not serve as much of a host for local insects and wildlife. May provide food for insects in the spring.

FERTILIZING: Apply a fertilizer for acid-loving plants in the early spring.

PRUNING: Remove spent flower clusters immediately after the blooms finish. Pruning is not usually needed or recommended, but may be done right after blooming is finished in late spring or early summer.

TOXICITY FLAGS: Toxic to dogs, cats, and horses.

USES: Hedge, Foundation planting, Specimen