# Pinkshell Azalea (Rhododendron vaseyi) > Wide-open pink flowers on bare spring twigs, from a rare azalea that grows wild only in the mountains of North Carolina. Also called pink-shell azalea, Azalea vaseyi, Biltia vaseyi. Category: Native Shrubs. Grown from seed by Blue Whale Trees. Web version: https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/pinkshell-azalea/ ![Pinkshell azalea (Rhododendron vaseyi) pale pink flowers with long stamens on bare twigs](https://bluewhaletrees.com/img/plants/pinkshell-azalea-h1610-800.jpg) *Photo: Cephas, CC BY-SA 4.0 ยท [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ARhododendron_vaseyi_JRVdH_01.jpg)* ## Facts - Type: Shrub - Mature height: 5 to 15 ft - USDA hardiness zones: 4 to 7 - Grows wild in: The Appalachians, rich moist slopes, stream banks and rocky ground - Native range: North Carolina. Also recorded in 1 other state, outside its native range - Sun: Part, Full - Soil moisture: Average - Growth rate: Slow - Traits: Rare, Showy flowers, Fall color, Wildlife value - 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 Pinkshell azalea is a rare wild azalea named for G. R. Vasey, who found it on Balsam Mountain in North Carolina in 1878. Its flowers lack the long tube of most azaleas, so the petals look almost separate. Most flowers carry seven stamens rather than five. It does not cross with other rhododendrons. NatureServe ranks it vulnerable, and North Carolina lists it as significantly rare. Digging by nurseries and gardeners is among the threats to it. Plant it at a woodland edge or beside a path, where its flowers on bare twigs catch the eye in early spring. ## Size, growth and what to expect Pinkshell azalea grows slowly, and our growth estimator treats it as slow, about a foot a year. It grows 5 to 15 feet tall and 5 to 10 feet wide, with an open, irregular habit. Clusters of 5 to 15 flowers open in April and May, before the leaves. Each is 1.5 to 2.25 inches across, pale to deep pink or sometimes white, with orange freckles on the upper petals. The capsules ripen from August to October. In fall the leaves turn red to burgundy where they get some sun. It grows wild only in the Blue Ridge of North Carolina, above 3,000 feet, from Ashe County south to Transylvania and Macon counties. Some 19 to 48 wild stands and at least 12,500 plants are known. It has escaped into the wild in Massachusetts, possibly from a nursery. ## How to grow Pinkshell Azalea Pinkshell azalea flowers best in part shade or full sun, in moist, acid soil rich in humus that drains well. It will not stand dense clay, so work organic matter into a clay soil before planting. Set plants 6 feet apart and keep them 5 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, and put the native soil back in. Mulch with pine needles or leaves, kept off the stems. It is easy to raise from seed, which it sets freely. The seed is dust-fine and needs light, with no chilling. Sow it in winter on the surface of damp milled sphagnum, uncovered, at room temperature under lights and a clear cover. Seedlings come up in one to three weeks. Water weekly through the first two summers, since the roots are shallow and it will not stand drought. Rabbits seldom harm it, but cage young plants where deer are common, as for our other wild azaleas. Prune, if at all, right after bloom. Each flower carries both male and female parts, and bees and butterflies come to the flowers. Sources disagree on whether a native azalea sets seed with its own pollen, so plant two seedlings from different parents for seed. Lace bugs, aphids and mites can mark the leaves, and root rot takes plants in soil that stays wet. Every part of the plant is poisonous if eaten, and honey from its flowers can be too. ## Sources - [NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox: Rhododendron vaseyi](https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/rhododendron-vaseyi/) - [Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center: Rhododendron vaseyi](https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=RHVA) - [Flora of North America, vol. 8: Rhododendron vaseyi](http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=250065644) - [Trees and Shrubs Online: Rhododendron vaseyi](https://www.treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/rhododendron/rhododendron-vaseyi/) - [NatureServe Explorer: Rhododendron vaseyi](https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.142664/Rhododendron_vaseyi) - [Native Plant Trust, Go Botany: Rhododendron vaseyi](https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/species/rhododendron/vaseyi/) - [North Carolina Natural Heritage Program: List of Rare Plant Species of North Carolina 2024, revised 11/03/2025](https://www.ncnhp.org/media/831/open) - [USDA Forest Service, Woody Plant Seed Manual (2008), Rhododendron chapter](https://www.fs.usda.gov/nsl/Wpsm/Rhododendron.pdf) - [UConn Plant Database: Rhododendron vaseyi](https://plantdatabase.uconn.edu/detail.php?pid=405) ## 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 Pinkshell Azalea, add ?species=pinkshell-azalea with zone (2 to 10), sun (full, part, shade) and moisture (dry, average, wet) to that address, for example ?species=pinkshell-azalea&zone=4&sun=part&moisture=average. - [Companion species for Pinkshell Azalea](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/companions/index.html.md?species=pinkshell-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=pinkshell-azalea - [Seed sowing planner](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/sowing/index.html.md): how Pinkshell 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=pinkshell-azalea - [Pollination planner](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/pollination/index.html.md): what Pinkshell 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=pinkshell-azalea:2 - [Bloom and fruit calendar](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/calendar/index.html.md): the months Pinkshell Azalea flowers and fruits, in the grid for every species.