Mid-Atlantic Gardening: Summertime plant shopping, 1 by UMD_Terp

UMD_Terp wrote:
Here is a wonderful article that I have found explaining "exbury" azaleas and their attachment to deciduous azaleas.

It is well written and very informative. So if you're curious about naming and hybridizers spend 5 minutes and study up!

TEASER:
How many times have you walked through a garden center and found the majority of the deciduous azaleas referred to as "Exbury Azaleas"? Are all of these plants in their various dazzling colors truly Exburys? In many cases the answer is no. Many of the plants are often close relatives of the Exbury azalea. Further observations at other nurseries or garden centers might reveal other hybrid names such as Knaphill and Ghent. What are these Knaphill, Ghent, and Exbury Hybrids? Why has the name Exbury become associated with so many of these plants? The following historical account is an attempt to clarify the answer to these questions and to discuss the development of Exbury azaleas and their kin.

http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JARS/v40n1/v40n1-cash1.h...