Wow! Thank you for pointing me in the right direction. Looking at the Vireya pictures, I think I saw one right after I bought my Rhododendron obtusum. It has glossy leathery leaves and seems very very healthy, maybe because it is native to my country. It has dark red flowers on it borne in clusters of about 6-8 on branch ends. I will head back to the nursery on the weekend to look around.

Your site is very very informative. I can't thank you enough for the help.

I'd think hot climate azaleas belonging to groups with names like Indian and Belgian Indica etc. that have been long grown for forcing in greenhouses or displayed to great effect on large properties in the Deep South of the US would be better than the Kurume etc. types listed above. Kinds like that are what are seen in Hawaii, for instance. These are derived from species native to lower altitudes and hotter situations (and their hybrids).

Update on my Kurume: Lots of new shoots and leaves...Found out that the one chewing on the leaves are sawfly caterpillars. Found about 5 dead on the coffee ground mulch I just put in. Still have issues with black spot fungus and browning leaf tips but aside from that it is not wilting or anything. I am heading out to the plant nursery tomorrow to find some other hybrids and Vireyas. I don't know but I find the Kurume form a bit more exquisite even when not in bloom than the Vireyas. I hope I find some hybrid of the two or the hyperthicum(sp?) one if I'm lucky.

Also I read that some rhododendrons have double flowers are they worth it? I had bad experience with double flower hibiscus rosa sinensis the flowers are too heavy and bend the plant or fall off. Is it not the case with Azaleas and Rhododendrons?

The Vireya (and their garden hybrids) are a whole large section of the genus with a great variety of flower and plant forms. If you have seen one you have most definitely not seen them all.

Flowers of certain double evergreen azaleas may bend down when soaked. Otherwise I have not seen a problem with double azalea (and rhododendron) flowers being too heavy for their stems.

Just got back from the plant nursery. The kind lady there told me a lot of things about them.

1. If I buy Vireyas, they won't flower because of the altitude since I live in Manila which is considered low lands. They will only flower in high altitudes like Baguio in here.

2. The azaleas they are selling are hybrids from Rhododendron Hyperythrum. She assured me that they will survive our hot summers if I can provide the shade they need.

3. She is selling both Vireyas and Kurume x Hyperythrum hybrids and she assured me I will have more flowering success with the Kurume x Hyperythrum hybrids.

4. She also offered to sell me Camellias, I may need to look at it since she claims they will provide good shade for my azaleas and have the same exact living conditions as them so good companions, is that true?

I'm so excited, I already placed an order for 5 double white with yellow centers, 4 double mauve/lavender spotted ones and 5 double whites with pink borders azaleas, they are so gorgeous. ^^

There are various different species of Vireya that grow from lowlands to mountain tops in the wild. Again it sounds like characteristics of part of the group are being wrongly attributed to the whole group. Here suitable kinds are even grown by enthusiasts as house plants. You should look into the subject more before accepting that none of them will work for you.

Rhododendron hyperythrum is not an azalea. If somebody has produced hybrids between this and azaleas then these hybrids will be azaleodendrons and not azaleas. Such crosses are not impossible, per se, as a small number of other kinds are already known, but it is certainly not usual - I would want to check to see if R. hyperythrum was in fact the species involved.

Thanks bboy. I purchased 1 Vireya to try them out, might as well grow them at the same time. ^^ Also are kurume hybrids fast growers? I read somewhere they are slow but I just transplanted one as a trial specimen 3 weeks back and the new shoots are already 1 1/2 inches to 2 inches long should I be alarmed? My coffee ground mulch had these white powdery stuff on them so I removed them seems like a fungal growth. Looking for peat moss as substitute mulch, are they good?

I will certainly heed your advice on the altitude thing. I need to educate myself more on the subject before taking somebody's word for it.

Summer will hit us here in 1 month time, I will find out if all of them will die. I certainly hope not! ^^

Do not use peat moss as a mulch. It is a soil amendment to be used when preparing the soil in a bed or container and can cause severe problems when used as a mulch including dehydrating the soil and preventing moisture from reaching the soil. It also tends to blow around. It is best to mulch with a 2-inch layer of an airy organic material such as wood chips, ground bark, pine needles, pine bark or rotted oak leaves. A year-round organic mulch will also provide natural nutrients and will help keep the soil cool and moist.

Do not use peat moss as a mulch. It is a soil amendment to be used when preparing the soil in a bed or container and can cause severe problems when used as a mulch including dehydrating the soil and preventing moisture from reaching the soil. It also tends to blow around. It is best to mulch with a 2-inch layer of an airy organic material such as wood chips, ground bark, pine needles, pine bark or rotted oak leaves. A year-round organic mulch will also provide natural nutrients and will help keep the soil cool and moist.

Aaah okie....noted. I took pictures of the specimen I bought and had it ID'd in a different forum. The results just came, it is not Kurume hybrid but Rhododendron Kanehirai Wilson, sheesh plant nurseries will tell you anything just to make money.

Kinda relieved since it exists in subtropical Taiwan but I wonder if it will survive here though, not much is written about it in the web save some pictures.

If I can't get my hands on pine bark or needles mulch can I use wood chips? I read somewhere it makes the ph go up. Lots of wood chips here and they look clean too. We don't have oak here so that is out of the question. I found a bag of acidifying agent in a DIY store used for swimming pools to neutralize chlorine can I use that to lower ph?

I'm really grateful you guys taking the time to teach an obvious beginner such as myself. Thank you!

For acidic plants, conifer bark chips (pine, fir, spruce, cedar, juniper, etc.) are the ideal mulch. The wood is not, but can be used if you monitor the acidity of the soil. The main thing to look for is to watch the leaves of rhododendron and azalea plants. If they turn yellow or yellowish with green veins, the plant has chlorosis which is usually a lack of iron caused by soil that is not acidic enough.

I doubt the pool chemical is acceptable. They are usually soluble chemicals like muriatic acid and will not have a lasting effect on the soil. The best approach is to use peat moss in the soil mix when planting and then to add powdered sulfur to the soil if there are problems and you need to increase the acidity (lower the pH). Powdered sulfur (flowers of sulfur) is available from some garden centers, but it is also in most pharmacies. The same product is used in gardens and as a medicine. The amount to use is discussed on my website.

Do not use aluminum sulfate. It is sold in garden centers to lower pH, but the aluminum ions accumulate in the soil and are toxic to rhododendrons and azaleas.

Here is a link that might be useful: How to grow rhododendrons and azaleas.

Aaah I will try the powder sulfur. Can I just add it onto the surface or should I dig it in? I don't want to risk disturbing the roots so I'm kinda skeptical about the digging part. Right now I'm adding vinegar to my diluted liquid fertilizer once a week at half strength so far no chlorosis yet, the plant does look healthy. I avoid splashing water on the leaves since it is so humid here so I use a drip system directly on the crown, so far so good.

If you are able to know the pH of your tap water maybe you have a way to monitor the pH of your soil also. Especially if trying to change it you should be keeping track of the effects of any additives. Proceed carefully, even one pH point in increase or decrease represents a huge change that can have adverse effects on soil life if undertaken rapidly.

Interesting thread.
Some pool pH lowering products contain sodium bisulfate, which would add very undesirable sodium to the soil. Rhodyman's advice to use sulfur is best.
The report of R. Hyperythrum based azaleadendrons is utterly fascinating...though probably incorrect. If you can get some pictures of such plants this spring they would be appreciated.

hi @ebonhawke, i'm in the philippines too and saw some azaleas in baguio orchidarium last weekend. beautiful almost-neon blooms. i just didn't buy any because i didn't know if they would survive the weather where i live. how did yours do? did they survive? or should i just forget about getting azaleas?

Most of the ones with almost-neon blooms are Vireya Rhododendrons which are tropical. They will not tolerate a freeze. Some Vireyas are from Borneo and the Philippines. Their culture is very much like that of orchids. Some are terrestrial, but most are epiphytic.

Here is a link that might be useful: Vireya Rhododenrons

Most of the ones with almost-neon blooms are Vireya Rhododendrons which are tropical. They will not tolerate a freeze. Some Vireyas are from Borneo and the Philippines. Their culture is very much like that of orchids. Some are terrestrial, but most are epiphytic.

Here is a link that might be useful: Vireya Rhododenrons

thanks for the helpful tip, @rhydyman! i will certainly research more on vireya rhododenrons. going back to that nursery next month. i might give it a try! :)

I am looking for rhododendron or azaleas that are SCENTED and will live on the FLATLANDS of the TROPICS in Puerto Rico: no real cool period . I know there are not many, but there are some. And I need SPECIFIC names of cultivars please! Thanks so much! Frank at tropicalgardener@gmail.com

There are scented vireyas but not all vireyas will actually grow in a lowland tropical setting; some species need the cooler nights because they are native to 4000' and higher.

Thanks david, that's why I was asking for specific possibilities, perhaps personal experience...

You could ask these nice people:
http://www.bovees.com/
Who are the US authorities on vireyas, apparently,
However I would also try some Australian gardening forums if you can find them; specifically ones for people in Caires, Darwin and other truely tropical parts. The collusion between Commonwealth culture and tropical climate could well mean they are particularly inclined to growing such plants if they exist; even in mild, oceanic Sydney the vireyas are used as garden subjects so I think, overall, they probably have more expertise with them as a country than anyone in the US. Or even a Florida gardening forum though I suppose it's only Miami and south where conditions are similar to yours. Obviously the various standard southern indicas and southern native Azaleas grow around northern to central Florida but I don't know what their southern limit is.

For example, I found this in google: http://www.camelliaglen.com.au/

Thanks david, will do :)