Thank you, I know what you mean about Azaleas. A few of my neighbors have the Girard in both crimson and white and they bloom so beautifully every spring. They don't look like much in the winter but when they bloom, they're extraordinary.

Where I have these two planted is a really tough area with lots of roots forming, even after I'd spend a couple of days pulling them all up. There's a huge Northern Maple in my front yard, not far from this area and I am pretty sure that the roots are strangling every plant I put there. I'm trying to find something that will grow in the small space. I've tried Rhody's, different types of grass plants, Hydrangeas, etc., but none of them have grown very well there. I'm about to give up, maybe give it one my try because there's a Aglo Rhody growing at the end that's doing pretty well and if I don't fill in this space with a small plant of two, it will look terrible. Sorry for the long post.

It's too early to give up on these azaleas. Both show the classic signs of winter burn, damage from a combination of cold, sun and wind. Z5 is very difficult for most evergreen azaleas so some form of winter protection such as burlap screens or evergreen boughs is advisable. The deep snow of the 2014/2015 winter provided excellent protection. This was not the case in 2015/2016. It is also quite likely that the azaleas entered the winter in a dry state because of the root competition from the Norway (not Northern) maple. Growing anything within the root zone of Norway maples is difficult but not impossible. Rhododendrons and azaleas can actually do pretty well because of their dense fibrous root systems as long as they are given extra water during dry spells. Don't try to remove the maple roots. Cutting them just stimulates more vigorous growth. Instead, plant on top of the ground in a coarse planting medium of mostly conifer bark. In any case, wait until more settled warm weather before assuming your plants are dead. They may be, but there's a pretty good chance you will begin to see new green buds along the stems once things warm up. You might also think about getting rid of the maple. Professional tree removal is expensive, but Norway maples are incredibly invasive and are in no way a desirable tree. A whole new world of gardening would open up for you without its dominating presence.

I disagree...Azaleas are easy to grow. You just have to have the right Azalea for the right climate and soil....

If you live in MA make sure NOT to buy Georgia Azaleas..you need a zone 3/4 Azalea..I suggest any Northern Lights Azalea..I am in MN and have many that are beautiful in pink, white, yellow, orange, purple, red.

What kind of soil do you have-clay? well good luck, they will probably die. I have very sandy soil and they love it....they like acid and well drained soil.

SUN? forget about it, they love just about any kind of sun moderate to spotty sun/shade.I even have one in near full shade on the north side of y house and it is beautiful. I am in a pine forest and they love it.

Spring..my Azaleas look pretty dead. They needs a couple of weeks of good consistent sun and temps to look like they are even coming back alive. Right now you need to wait and see.

Mu neighbor had bad luck with azaleas she had on her boulevard due to snowplows dumping road snow/chemicals etc. on them.

My best

The original post and Sarah Jean Koolman Olsen's reply gives a good example of how confusing an imprecise term like "azalea" can be. The two azaleas shown in the photos are evergreen types rated hardy to -15 although that would be a stretch in most years. The azaleas in SJKO's reply are deciduous types. Some of these, including the Northern Lights series from the U of Minnesota, can be grown in Z3/4. As far as I can recall, there are no evergreen azaleas at all adapted to Z3/4 conditions. To make things even more confusing, there are some deciduous rhododendrons - mucronulatum, dauricum, schlippenbachii - hardy enough for Z4 and possibly Z3.

Rather than try and deal with something that can compete successfully with the roots of a Norway maple, I would put bark (or some mulch you like) in the area and use large planters. Set them on large tiles so the roots of the maple cannot invade them. Due to hard freezing in winter in your zone, I'd plant annuals in the planters.

Thank you all for your comments, I appreciate them. I will wait to see how these azaleas do in the next couple of months. Is that way my huge tree is, a Norway Maple, I've been told Northern but whatever it is, it is huge and there's no way I can have it cut down anytime soon. I hate it, I don't like those seed pods that fall off it constantly and get all over my yard and the roots are huge near the tree. I have Rhody's growing on the other side of my front steps, further away from the Norway and they are doing very well. It seems like no mater what I try to grow in this area, it doesn't do well. I am thinking about raising that area, adding some type of small wall with bricks so they are higher above the soil line than they are now. The weather has been extremely nice in my area, high 50's, low 60's and my tulips, next to these two azaleas, are up......but today it's cold with sleet and snow, so I can most likely say goodbye to the tulips. Anyway, thanks again for the advice.

Linda

If it makes you feel any better, my azaleas look like that right now too. I'm in Connecticut. I'm pretty sure mine look like that every spring and then they perk up and bloom. I'm thinking it might be because we got no rain last spring or summer.