We have a number of azalea bushes in our yard, but two of them have outdone themselves this fall. Blooming white in the spring, the leaves on these two plants have turned golden yellow, and not a dull shade, but a radiant glow. Gold nuggets glistening in the sun. They are spectacular.
Walter Reeves, a noted Georgian gardener, says this about yellow azalea leaves:
“Keep in mind that although we think of azaleas as evergreen, they are, to varying degrees, semi-deciduous. They drop a certain percentage of leaves each winter. Large-leaved varieties, like the Indica clan seem more likely to show marked yellowing than the Kurume group.
Azalea growers struggle with leaf drop every year. Much research has been done but varying amounts of fertilizer seems not to have much effect. In other words, what you’re seeing is normal behavior for azaleas and rhododendrons. The yellow leaves are those that were produced back in spring, when life looked good for the plant. They are more delicate than leaves produced in summer, so they are the first to drop when cold weather arrives. As long as the leaves on the tips of your azalea are green, the plant is healthy. It will fill in with more leaves next year.”
These azaleas of mine may have turned yellow in the past, I don’t recall. But I know they have never been so lovely as this year. Maybe it’s the weather, or maybe these two plants that our son gave us many years ago are simply showing off. The versatility of these two plants, snow white in April and golden yellow in fall, merely adds to their beauty.