# Oconee Azalea (Rhododendron flammeum) > Scarlet, orange-red or orange flowers in April and May, among the brightest of all American azaleas, on a heat-tolerant shrub of Georgia and South Carolina. Also called Rhododendron speciosum. Category: Native Shrubs. Grown from seed by Blue Whale Trees. Web version: https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/oconee-azalea/ ![Oconee azalea (Rhododendron flammeum) bright orange-red flower trusses among green leaves](https://bluewhaletrees.com/img/plants/oconee-azalea-h1610-800.jpg) *Photo: Clifflandis, CC0 ยท [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ARhododendron_flammeum_2.jpg)* ## Facts - Type: Shrub - Mature height: 6 to 8 ft - USDA hardiness zones: 6 to 9 - Grows wild in: Dry uplands, rich moist slopes, stream banks and sandy barrens - Native range: Georgia and South Carolina - Sun: Part, Shade - Soil moisture: Average, Dry - Growth rate: Slow - Traits: Showy flowers, Rare, Wildlife value, Tolerates shade - Sold as: Saplings, Seed Heights and zones are typical ranges for the species in cultivation; local conditions and seed source shift them. ## Availability Not yet priced online. Ask at captain@bluewhaletrees.com or leave an email on the web page to be told when it is listed. ## Notes Oconee azalea is the scarlet-to-orange wild azalea of Georgia and South Carolina, and NatureServe ranks it vulnerable. It is close kin to our flame azalea, but it takes the heat and humidity of the Deep South, where the mountain species does poorly. It was growing in English gardens by 1789, and it is thought to have given its red to many garden azaleas. Plant it in the dappled shade of tall pines or oaks, where its trusses light up a spring border. ## Size, growth and what to expect Oconee azalea grows slowly, about a foot a year in our growth estimator, and a young plant may reach only 3 feet in 10 years. It matures into a rounded shrub 6 to 8 feet tall and as wide, flatter-topped than most azaleas. Trusses of 6 to 11 funnel-shaped flowers open in April and May, as the new leaves unfold. They are scarlet, orange-red or orange, with a darker orange blotch on the upper lobe and long stamens. The flowers carry an acrid scent rather than a sweet one. It grows wild only in Georgia and South Carolina, below about 1,600 feet, from the Ridge and Valley through the Piedmont to the sandhills. Its home is open, dry woods, slopes and ridges, stream bluffs and longleaf pine sandhills. At least 50 wild sites are thought to exist, in 22 Georgia counties and five in South Carolina. ## How to grow Oconee Azalea Oconee azalea does best in part shade or dappled light, sheltered from afternoon sun. It wants an acid soil rich in organic matter that stays moist but drains well, and it will not stand dense clay. Set plants 6 feet apart and keep them 4 feet from a wall. At its size it can go within 15 feet of overhead wires. Saplings ship potted. Plant dormant plants in early spring or fall, in a hole three times as wide as the root ball and no deeper. Set the top of the ball a little above grade, since the roots rot where water stands, and put the native soil back in. Mulch with pine needles, bark or wood chips, kept off the stems. The seed is dust-fine and needs light but no chilling. Sow it in winter on the surface of damp milled sphagnum, uncovered, under a clear cover at room temperature. Seedlings come up in one to three weeks. Water weekly through the first two summers, and never let the shallow roots dry out. Do not hoe around them, and do not overwater or overfeed, since both invite root rot. Deer may browse it, so cage young plants where deer are many. Prune, if at all, right after bloom. Each flower carries both male and female parts, and bees, butterflies and hummingbirds visit the flowers. Sources disagree on whether a native azalea sets seed with its own pollen, so plant two seedlings from different parents for seed. Hybrids with Piedmont azalea are known, and seed from a plant near other azaleas in bloom may give crosses. Lace bugs, aphids and mites can mark the leaves, and root rot follows poor drainage. Every part of the plant is poisonous if eaten. ## Sources - [Flora of North America, vol. 8: Rhododendron flammeum](http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=250065646) - [NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox: Rhododendron flammeum](https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/rhododendron-flammeum/) - [Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder: Rhododendron flammeum](https://plantfinder.mobot.org/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=279983) - [Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center: Rhododendron flammeum](https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=RHFL) - [Trees and Shrubs Online (International Dendrology Society): Rhododendron flammeum, from Bean and the RHS Rhododendron Handbook](https://www.treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/rhododendron/rhododendron-flammeum/) - [USDA Forest Service, Woody Plant Seed Manual (2008), Rhododendron chapter](https://www.fs.usda.gov/nsl/Wpsm/Rhododendron.pdf) - [NatureServe Explorer: Rhododendron flammeum](https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.147574/Rhododendron_flammeum) - [South Carolina Native Plant Society: Rhododendron flammeum, Oconee azalea](https://scnps.org/plants/rhododendron-flammeum/) - [American Rhododendron Society: plant description, Rhododendron flammeum](https://www.rhododendron.org/descriptionS_new.asp?ID=222) - [Jones, LeBude and Ranney 2010, Vegetative propagation of Oconee azalea (Rhododendron flammeum) by stem cuttings and mound layering, Journal of Environmental Horticulture 28(2): 69-73](https://doi.org/10.24266/0738-2898-28.2.69) - [Alabama Cooperative Extension System: Native Azaleas, Chip East, April 15, 2020](https://www.aces.edu/blog/topics/landscaping/native-azaleas/) ## Read before planting - [Ten planting mistakes that quietly kill trees](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/ten-planting-mistakes/index.html.md) - [Transplanting young trees: timing, water and protection](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/transplanting-young-trees/index.html.md) - [Protecting young trees from voles, rabbits, deer and squirrels](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/protecting-trees-from-animals/index.html.md) - [The habitat around a tree is part of the tree](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/habitat-around-a-tree/index.html.md) - [Invasive vines and shrubs are what is killing your woods](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/invasive-vines-and-shrubs/index.html.md) - [Native trees and shrubs for birds: caterpillars, fruit, mast, nests and winter cover, month by month](https://bluewhaletrees.com/articles/native-trees-for-birds/index.html.md) ## Related - [Planting-site check](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/site-check/index.html.md): for a thrive, struggle or fail verdict on Oconee Azalea, add ?species=oconee-azalea with zone (2 to 10), sun (full, part, shade) and moisture (dry, average, wet) to that address, for example ?species=oconee-azalea&zone=6&sun=part&moisture=average. - [Companion species for Oconee Azalea](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/companions/index.html.md?species=oconee-azalea): the natives that share its ground and the plants that pair with it in a yard. - [Growth estimator](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/growth/index.html.md): how the height and trunk projections are made; the estimate itself runs in the browser at https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/growth/#species=oconee-azalea - [Seed sowing planner](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/sowing/index.html.md): how Oconee Azalea is sown, in the chart for every species (treatment, cold days, depth, timing); the dated plan runs in the browser at https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/sowing/#species=oconee-azalea - [Pollination planner](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/pollination/index.html.md): what Oconee Azalea needs for a crop and how many to plant, in the table for every species; the planner runs in the browser at https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/pollination/#plants=oconee-azalea:2 - [Bloom and fruit calendar](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/calendar/index.html.md): the months Oconee Azalea flowers and fruits, in the grid for every species.