Azalea japonica Stewartstonian

The 'Stewartsonian' Japanese Azalea is a very beautiful variety with attractive, abundant brick-red flowers from April to May. Its evergreen foliage is dark green and shiny, taking on beautiful bronze and purple shades from autumn to winter, making it ornamental through all the seasons. It is a small, slow-growing deciduous shrub forming a rounded and compact ball that requires no pruning, ideal for decorating a patio planter or to add colour to a small ericaceous bed. It is hardy and easy-to-grow as long as it is planted in semi-shade in humus-rich, well-drained, moist, lime-free soil.

The 'Stewartsonian' Azalea, also known as 'Stewartonian' or 'Stewartoniana', is a variety bred by Joe Gable in Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of a series of very hardy hybrids with extended flowering and evergreen foliage that are more resistant to harsh winters. These shrubs perform well in cool and humid temperate climates with distinct seasons. 

'Stewartsonian' is a compact variety, with an irregular bushy habit that becomes more spreading with age. Slow-growing, it reaches approximately 80 cm (31.5 in) in height and 1 m (3 ft 4 in) in width by the age of 10. This truly dazzling plant flowers from April to May and continues to do so over a long period. The very large flowers, 6 cm (2.3 in) diameter with beautifully undulated edges are a stunning shade of bright red-orange to brick-red. They are funnel-shaped and grouped in terminal clusters of 4 to 5. The evergreen foliage, consists of small, simple, elliptical leaves with smooth edges arranged alternately on the branches. They are rather light green in spring while the late summer foliage is a fairly dark green, with a glossy finish, turning bronze and purple in winter. Azaleas and Rhododendrons have a shallow root system that always needs to be kept moist, but they also dislike waterlogged soil which would suffocate the roots.

Japanese Azaleas thrive in cool climates with distinct winters, planted in humus-rich and acidic soil, such as ericaceous soil. Under these conditions, they are very beautiful evergreen shrubs for borders or flowering pots, attractive all year round. They harmonise beautifully with heathers, Japanese maples, or their Chinese relatives that change colour with the seasons, as well as Japanese camellias and their graceful, often fragrant, autumn-flowering cousins, the Camellia sasanqua hybrids. This 'Stewartsonian' variety, growing wider than it does high, allows you to play with heights and fill the gaps under large ericaceous shrubs. It will also look wonderful in a large, cool, moist and shaded rockery, at the front of borders, or on the terrace or balcony, in a large, carefully chosen pot, with suitable soil, and watered with lime-free water.