The prettiest azalea varieties depend on your taste, but Autumn Royalty wins the popular vote. It earned the Azalea of the Year award for its rich purple blooms. Those flowers stand out against dark green leaves through all three bloom seasons and grab your eye from across the yard.
In my experience, the best looking azaleas are the ones that stop people in their tracks. I visited a botanical garden last spring with 15 Encore varieties in one long bed. People stopped to photograph Autumn Royalty's deep purple blooms. Autumn Twist pulled them in with swirled purple-and-white petals. Autumn Embers caught attention with warm orange-red flowers.
The range of azalea flower colors in the Encore lineup runs wider than you'd expect. You can find pure white, soft pink, hot pink, deep rose, lavender, bold purple, salmon, coral, and orange-red. Bicolor types like Autumn Twist show two tones on each bloom. The purple-and-white mix shifts between seasons too.
I tested how light changes your flower colors over two years. Morning sun brings out deeper, richer tones in most varieties. My Autumn Sangria shows darker pink blooms on its east-facing side. The shaded west side produces washed-out flowers by comparison. If you want bold color, plant where your azaleas get 4 to 6 hours of morning light.
Among award winning azaleas, Autumn Royalty earned its title for good reason. The blooms measure about 3 inches across with purple so deep it borders on blue in the right light. The plant grows to 4 to 5 feet and flowers heavy in all three seasons. If you can only pick one variety, this is your safest bet for impact.
Visit your local nursery during bloom season so you can see colors before you buy. Photos don't show azalea colors well at all. Then grab three to four different varieties and plant them together in one group. Purple Autumn Royalty next to white Autumn Angel creates a striking contrast. Add a pink Autumn Sangria and you'll have a display that beats any single variety on its own.
You don't need to spend a fortune to build a gorgeous azalea bed. Start with two or three prettiest azalea varieties that catch your eye. Space them 3 to 4 feet apart and give them morning sun for the richest colors. Within two or three years your plants will fill in and give you a color show from spring through fall that makes your whole yard look better.
Read the full article: Best Encore Azaleas for Your Garden
