Azalea (a-zāl' ya), a flowering plant belonging to the Heath family, closely related to the rhododendron. It covers mountain slopes, is a native of the countries bordering on the Black Sea, and abounds in North America. They are among the most ornamental and beautiful of flowering shrubs, and are well represented by native forms in our eastern mountain regions. In the flowering season they are often completely covered with showy flowers of various bright colors.
The pink azalea, often called the wild honeysuckle, is distributed from Maine to Illinois and south to the Gulf of Mexico. It is a shrub from two to six feet high, the flowers grow in clusters, bloom in April and May, giving rosy hue to swamp and moist wood. Closely related to this is the clammy azalea or white honeysuckle, a shrub from three to ten feet high, bearing fragrant white blossoms in early summer. It is seen as a rule in swamps along the coast, found from Maine to Florida and westward to Texas. Decking the mountains of Georgia is the smooth or tree azalea, with June flowers of rare fragrance and beauty. The azalea is highly prized as a garden flower in Europe. European horticulturists were quick to appreciate its beauty. It is the national flower of Flanders.