Azalea

This azalea we inherited with the house and I just love it! It blooms like crazy and is a wonderful pink color. The color theme for the front of the house is shades of pink and purples, and this is certainly the center piece in the spring. The flowers come out before the leaves so all you see are the flowers (not as if these flowers couldn't out-compete the leaves anyway though!). I have tried to get another to grow on the other corner of the house, but I just have never had any luck. I'm actually surprised that this one grows so well here. It is right in front of a downspout and our foundation is limestone (azaleas are said to prefer acidic soil), plus our neighbor boy tried to pull it out a few years back. Despite all this though it comes back strong each year and it's blooming right now! Oh Joy!


(btw: can anyone tell me what is the difference between azaleas and rhododendrons? I've seen the same plant called both, so it's a little confusing to me.)