Deciduous azaleas are greatly underrated as garden plants for cooler climates. There are native species found across much of the northern hemisphere, and a huge number of hybrids have been bred from these.

They are a great bonus in the bare, late winter deciduous garden, bursting into masses of brilliant yellow, orange, red or white flowers, often before their spring foliage emerges and when other spring-blooming plants are just thinking about flowering.

Their foliage progresses from a bright, vibrant green of spring, shading to bronze over summer, before a final blaze of autumn colour.

Many white or pale pink plants are fabulously fragrant, such as Rhododendron occidentale from western USA.