Western Azalea
Rhododendron occidentale
The West's only deciduous native azalea, perfuming streamsides with showy white-to-pink, yellow-blotched flowers in early summer. Spectacular but wanting cool, moist, acidic roots. Like other rhododendrons and azaleas, leaves, nectar, and pollen should all be treated as poisonous.
- Family
- Ericaceae
- Type
- shrub
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 10–10 ft
- Spacing
- 4–8 ft apart
- Light
- part shade
- Soil moisture
- moist
- Soil pH
- acidic, neutral
- Bloom
- April, May, June, July, August
- Bloom colors
- white, pink, orange, yellow
- Wildlife value
- pollinators, hummingbirds, butterflies, larval host
- Caterpillar hosts
- ~51 butterfly & moth species
- Landscape uses
- specimen, hedge or screen
- Native states
- CA, OR
Related native plants
More Rhododendron species
- Great Rhododendron (Rhododendron maximum)
- Labrador Tea (Rhododendron groenlandicum)
- Pinxterbloom Azalea (Rhododendron periclymenoides)
- Pacific Rhododendron (Rhododendron macrophyllum)
- Flame Azalea (Rhododendron calendulaceum)
- Piedmont Azalea (Rhododendron canescens)