April and May are high season for enjoying the gorgeous blooms of rhododendrons. They come in many colors and sizes, and for the most part, are easy to grow. While some varieties bloom as early as February, and a few others hold off until June, this is the time when the bulk of them come into their glory.
When it comes to flower colors, the cooler shades of blue, purple, pink and red are by far in the majority. Out of the 126 varieties we list on our website, 95 of them fall into this category. But that still leaves more than 30 varieties that we carry that are considered to be in the yellow to orange range, and that means Northwest gardeners have got some pretty good options to try out in their gardens.
I reached out to my general manager and rhodie aficionado Trevor Cameron recently to pick his brain on his favorite yellow-ish varieties. Here are some that he selected, along with a few of my favorites.
Seaview Sunset: This has a bicolor flower of light yellow edged with a broad band of red-orange, giving it an overall warm feeling. It is a compact grower, reaching only 3 feet by 3 feet in 10 years, and prefers morning sun and afternoon shade. The flower trusses can contain up to 16 individual flowers, which makes it an impressive display in the garden.
Honey Butter: Flowers are funnel-bell-shaped with wavy edges, light yellowish coloring on the inside with pink edging and deep pink midribs. Blooms mid-spring and reaches roughly 4 feet tall. Prefers some afternoon shade.
Hotei: Flowers are openly bell-shaped and its color is a light yellow with a deeper shading of brilliant yellow. The flowers are held in loose, ball-shaped trusses of 10 to 12 flowers. It is a compact, tight growing plant that will grow to around 3 feet tall by 3 feet wide. Hotei should be grown in full to part shade — no afternoon sun, or it can burn. Young plants can be a little stingy with their blooms, but once they are established, it is a knockout.
Golden Torch: This is a nice compact pale-yellow variety that has some pink highlights. Flower trusses are ball-shaped with 13 to 15 flowers. It has an attractive, bushy habit maturing to around 4 feet tall and as wide. Does best in morning sun.
Nancy Evans: Flowers are openly funnel-shaped with wavy lobes and light yellow coloring with some early orange shading on the lobes and its reverse. Produces ball-shaped trusses that hold around 19 flowers and has a rounded, compact growth habit reaching 3 feet tall by 3 feet wide. It’s a real stunner!
Chikor: This is a cute little dwarf plant that grows only to about 2 feet tall and is tolerant of full sun. The flowers are a pale greenish-yellow color and are produced in clusters of 3 to 6 flowers. It is an early bloomer and is suitable for edging a border or even in a rockery.
Curlew: Another cute dwarf variety that tops out around 18 inches tall and is happiest when grown in some afternoon shade with good drainage. Flowers are a light yellow color, with the upper petals spotted a greenish-brown.
Patty Bee: One of my favorites, Patty’s growth habit stays tight and compact at only 18 inches tall. It sports openly funnel-shaped, wavy flowers that have light greenish-yellow petals held in lax trusses of 6 flowers. Tolerates full sun.
Remember that the above varieties do not all bloom at the same time, so be mindful to check the information on the varieties you choose — this is, of course, true for other colors as well. Spacing out bloom times by using different varieties is the best way to work toward that all elusive goal of “year ‘round interest” in the garden. Space out your visits to the garden center over the next six weeks so you can see all of them in full bloom. As always, stay safe and keep on gardening!
Steve Smith represents Sunnyside Nursery in Marysville, and can be reached at sunnysidenursery@msn.com.
Free online class
Sunnyside’s next free online class will be “Rockin’ Rhodies & Azaleas” at 10 a.m. April 23 accompanied by our annual Rhododendron Society Truss Show here in the nursery that same day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information about the class or the event, go to www.sunnysidenursery.net.
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