What does Washington state have in common with Nepal, West Virginia, the Jiangxi province in China, and the Indian state of Sikkim? All these places have chosen rhododendrons as their region's symbol.

Rhododendron occidentale, our native azalea, grows in Potrero Meadows on Mount Tamalpais, in Samuel P. Taylor State Park and on Azalea Hill near the high point of the Bolinas-Fairfax Road.

Spring brings on a bevy of blooms. Of them all, big, bouncy rhododendrons may be the most beloved. "People love rhododendrons because they identify with them; they're native here," says Mike Stewart, ...

Festival season kicks off this weekend in Kitsap County and beyond. Can summer be far behind? Festivals from Shelton to Port Townsend celebrate bluegrass, beer, Scandinavian culture, our military and ...

There was a time, not long ago, when the horticultural world was abuzz with a snobby classism, not unlike the social registering of Edwardian Era Britain. Somehow rhododendrons took the brunt of it.

Rhododendron occidentale, our native azalea, grows in Potrero Meadows on Mt. Tamalpais, in Samuel P. Taylor State Park and on Azalea Hill out the Bolinas-Fairfax Road. Rhododendron macrophyllum, our ...

This media is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's ...

With their grapefruit- to melon-sized clusters of rose-pink flowers set among large, leathery green leaves, our rhododendrons are hard to miss. Yes, the most of the pink-flowered rhododendron shrubs ...