i am curious about which ones would be considered lost.
can you give us a listing?

The wholesale nursery, Monrovia, carries:

ALASKA AZALEA - Azalea indica 'Alaska' (Rutherfordiana hybrid)
BRILLIANT AZALEA - Azalea `Brilliant` (Southern Indica)
DUC DE ROHAN AZALEA - Azalea `Duc de Rohan` (Southern Indica)
FORMOSA AZALEA - Azalea indica 'Formosa'
GEORGE L. TABER AZALEA - Azalea `George L. Taber` (Southern Indica)
IMPERIAL PRINCESSÂ AZALEA - Azalea `Moness` P.P.# 2754 (So. Indica)
IMPERIAL QUEENÂ AZALEA - Azalea `Monal` P.P.# 2753 (So. Indica)
LITTLE JOHN AZALEA - Azalea `Little John` (Southern Indica)
MISTRAL AZALEA - Azalea `Mistral` (Southern Indica)
MRS. G. G. GERBING AZALEA - Azalea indica 'Mrs. G. G. Gerbing'
NUCCIO`S CARNIVAL AZALEA - Azalea `Nuccio`s Carnival` (Southern Indica)
PHOENICIA AZALEA - Azalea `Phoenicia` (Southern Indica)
ROSE GLOW AZALEA - Azalea indica 'Rose Glow'
SOUTHERN CHARM AZALEA - Azalea `Southern Charm` (Southern Indica)

If you go to Monrovia.com you can find a nursery near you that can get these plants.

Thanks for Monrovia's list. I am working with "The Great Gardens of America Preservation Alliance" and The Azalea Society of America to comprise a list of the oldest indicas. We want to find as many as we can and preserve them in public and private gardens that are Alliance members around the country. Camellias are my speciality. I am just learning about azaleas. Any indica or other azalea variety that was in existence before 1900 is what we are looking for now. We will be looking for other varieties later.

I hope you have Fred Galle's "Azaleas" book and Lee's "Azalea Book". Galle listed over 32 Belgian Indica Azaleas and over 86 Southern Indian Hybrids.

The term indica azalea is somewhat vague. The term originated when R. simsii was introduced in England and eroneously called R. indicum. However, the true R. indicum was introduced in Holland. Meanwhile, Rcv. Mucronatum was grown England as Rcv. Indica.

These were grown by the Belgians as the Belgian Indian Hybrids as greenhouse plants for indoor use. Galle listed over 32 such hybrids as introduced before 1900. Many of these are still in the florists trade.

Around 1840, the Belgian Indian Hybrids were brought the Southeast US and hybridized into what was to be called the Southern Indian Hybrids. Galle listed over 86 such hybrids as introduced before 1900.

Lots of good info rhodyman! As I stated, I am just learning about azaleas. We have the camellia preservation program running well. I work for Magnolia Plantation in Charleston.You can contact me on our website. Any help anyone can give locating these would be greatly appreciated. The Belgian Indian Hybrids are of the most interest to me.

Once you have a list of names you can surf using these names to see what suppliers pop up.

I think Bobby Green in Fairhope, AL, has a couple of the antique indicas on his nursery's Website.

To identify other antique indicas, it would be a good idea to consult the mid-nineteenth-century Fruitland Nursery catalogs, which should be available at some of the research libraries in the Southeast. In the 1850's, the Fruitland Nursery catalogue was titled _Descriptive Catalogue of Fruit and Ornamental Trees, Shrubs, Vines, Roses, Evergreens, Hedgeplants, etc.: Cultivated and For Sale at Fruitland Nursery, Augusta, Georgia_. Multiple years of this publication are available for research at the University of Georgia Libraries in Athens, Duke in Durham, NC, and at other regional institutions. If traveling to these locations is out of the question, you could go to your local public library and talk with the interlibrary loan librarian about getting photocopies of the antebellum lists of indica azaleas. In addition to the Fruitland catalogue, you will need to consult the published catalogue of the Pomaria Nursery, which was located in Pomaria, SC, in the mid-1800's. Pomaria is in Newberry County. Copies of their catalog are also available in Southeastern research libraries, from which you could request photocopies of relevant catalogue pages. No doubt, there are other nursery catalogues you will need to investigate.

Thanks Jay,
I have forwarded several emails about fruitland to Maarten van der Giessen in Mobile. He is the head of our azalea search committee. I have the ones Bobby has. He is a good friend and has helped with the older camellias We have the camellia preservation part of our program going really well, So I am taking time to work on the azaleas. We are working on some of the more current collections, such as The Glen Dales, But the early indicas are proving the most difficult to locate. The Great Garden Alliance has 15 public gardens that have agreed to plant the collections to preserve them once we locate and propagate. I met with Dr. Hegwood with LSU this week-end. LSU's Burden Center, The Norfolk Botanical Garden and Magnolia Gardens will be the main propagation centers once we have the cuttings.

Dear Tom,
Glad to oblige. You may find the following list of indica azaleas from H. Harold Hume's _Azaleas: Kinds and Culture_ (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1956), pp. 67-70, of some use. The cultivars are grouped by color:

LAVENDER-LILAC

Concinna, Formosa, Omurasaki, Phoenicea, Rosea Purpurea, Violacea Rubra, Yodogawa.

ORANGE-RED

Aurantiaca Splendida, Coccinea Major, Glory of Sunninghill (Gloriosa), Pluto, President Clay, Prince of Orange, Rosaeflora.

ROSE-PINK and ROSE RED

Brilliant, Croemina, Elegans, Elegans Superba, George Franc, Harry Veitch, Maxwellii, Miltonii, Model de Marc, Perfection, Praestantissima, Pride of Dorking, Prince of Wales, Reine des Roses, Rosea Elegans.

SALMON

Cavendishiana, Comte de Thole, Duc de Rohan, Duke of Wellington, Frederick the Great, Lawsal (Pride of Summerville), Madam Frey, President, Symmetry, Vicomte de Neuport, William Bull.

WHITE

A. Borsig, Alba Maculata, Fielder's White, Flag of Truce, Indica Alba, Laterita Alba.

VARIEGATED

Alba Multiflora, Alba Punctulata, Anthenon (Sport of Iveryana), George Lindley Taber (Sport of Omurasaki),
Iveryana, Louise Margottin, Perfection de Rentz, Vittata (Fortunei, Vittata Punctata, Fortune's Azalea).

The text includes detailed descriptions of each cultivar including its color, habit of growth, etc. I haven't taken the time to type that information into this message. If you'd like a photocopy of these and other relevant pages, please let me know. I'll be happy to make photocopies and drop them into the mail. Hume mentions other early indica introductions such as _Rhododendron indica_ 'Sublanceolata,' but he does not include them in the list printed above. He says that 'Sublanceolata' is among the least cold tolerant of the indicas. It sustains severe frost damage in North Florida but is satisfactory in South Florida.

Are y'all in touch with the Southern Garden History Society? I think that organization's journal is _Magnolia_, isn't it? There may be some articles on the historic indica azaleas in _Magnolia_. Hume's list includes a few familiar names, but I've never heard of most of them before.

I hope this is of some help.

Does anyone know where I can get a Peppermint variety? I'm interested in bonsai work with it. Thanks!

There is:

Dexter's Peppermint rhododendron
Haag's Peppermint rhododendron
Peppermint Candy rhododendorn
Peppermint Twist rhododendron
Greenthumb Peppermint azalea
Holly Springs Peppermint Stick azalea
Humboldt Peppermint deciduous azalea
Peppermint Stick azalea (same as Holly Springs Peppermint Stick)

I am curious if my mother's house still have all her azalea. We grew up in the original farm house for the area we lived in. It is well over 100 year old now. And I am pretty sure the landscaping was never touched as we bought the house from the original owners (it stayed in their family). She still lives there so I will give her a call this week. Very curious now as they were these beautiful magenta colored ones. I wonder if I could take a cutting or something from one and grow where I live now. Hmmm...very cool way of preserving both my past and some good history to boot!

Evergreen azaleas tend to be very easy to root. For some advice, check:

Here is a link that might be useful: Azaleas Society of America article on rooting azalea cuttings

Hi I would like any information people may have on:
"Beauty of Dorking" - Ivery Nursery Dorking

Also does anyone know the original breeder or other information on "Pride of Dorking" - Which was referred to above.

I am researching the Nurseries of Dorking.
Thanks for any help
Steve

Hello Steve,

I am Martha from Minneapolis, MN, USA. My maternal grandmothers maiden name was Ivery. If the following information on Dorking Nurseries is already known to you, I apologize in advance. If you have additional information on the J. Ivery & son's I would be interested.

Thomas Ivery was born in Dorking , Sept 1765. His father(unknown 1st name) had a nursery in Dorking as early as 1770. Thomas(1765) inherited the "Ivery Nursery" from his father.

The fisrt reference I have found on the Ivery Nursery in Dorking is a painting. At the "Marylebone Cricket Club" the painting: Dorking by James Canter around 1770-80, showing a cricket match at The Cotmandene Common in Dorking. The Ivery Nursery & House are shown above the Pipp Brook Mill Pond along The London Rd.

Thomas' son James Ivery (born 1791) became, Ivery & Son's Nursery of Dorking & Reigate. James'(1791) 2 sons both became nurserymen.

James Ivery(1823) carried on J. Ivery & sons in Dorking(his son Henry James Ivery born 1857 continued the business and in 1881 employed 30 men. Henry was listed as a florist when his daughter Constance married in 1913. That is 4 generations of Ivery's in the business.

William Ivery(1825) was the owner of Hanover Nursery in Peckham.

Following are a few references on the web:

A History of Dorking.....by Bright, John Shenton, Published 1884

The Gardeners' Chronicle and Agricultural Gazette

Proceedings of the Royal Horticultural Society, Volume 3

THE JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE, COTTAHE GARDENER, COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, BEE-KEEPER ...

By GEORGE W. JOHNSON , June 4 1866

The Floral Magazine: Comprising Figures and Descriptions of ..., Volume 10

"AZALEA—FANNY IVERY.

From the Floral Magazine 1871

The name of Mr. Ivery, of Dorking, is well known to all
lovers of the Azalea, as that of one to whom we are indebted
for a large number of some of the best varieties in cultivation.
Cultivars/hybrids of Ivery, J. ordered by name year1Admiration (info) (‘Lateritium’ x ‘Iveryanum’) (a.)1853y2Beauty of Dorking (info) (? x ?) (a.)1863y3Beauty of Reigate (info) (? x ?) (a.)1852yetc.....

I hope this is helpful. I would love to know more about your research.

Regards,

Martha James