I don't expect mine to bloom anytime soon but R. yuefengense is worth growing for foliage alone. Beautiful round leaves in bluish green and a naturally squat habit make it a very attractive garden plant. Excellent choice, Parker!

Give it a mulched, grass-free area of some width. And it won't be likely to do well in full sun either, if that is what this planting site involves.

Good point about too sunny spot, Embothrium. I brought mine home and left it on a driveway for few hours in full sun and some of the top leaves suffered from sunburn. I think this particular species will enjoy either dappled shade all day or morning sun and afternoon shade.

As is the case with many species, it lacks vigor in our eastern climate. I had one I bought on-site at RSF, it languished for years and finally called it kaput in the first polar vortex winter. What people lose sight of is that "Seattle with regular summer watering" is still much closer to the climate in the native habitat of the majority of Asian rhododendron species that say, Baltimore or Philadelphia. 6000 feet up in SW China has highs in the 70s. When eastern collectors anywhere south or west of Cape Cod have an impression "oh, of course Rhododendron fortunei does well for us", they are really talking about strains that were already selected decades ago by people like Gable, to be summer hardy and winter hardy. Likewise even various basic primary hybrids have a little bit of heterosis that allows them to live for us, while their parents would not. That being said, of course, some subsections of the genus can do better than others. Most fortunea subsection species at least stand a chance of growing somewhere in the mid-Atlantic. Recent R. yuefengense offerings are seed grown, and maybe I just got back luck with mine. Maybe somewhere not far from here, in the Philly suburbs, a member of the ARS has managed to keep one alive. But my point is not to automatically assume any fortunea subseries plants like this, is going to do well before other species in the same subsection (R. fortunei, a parent of almost all of the famous 'Dexter' hybrids of the NE US) are known to do well.

So anyhow mine was planted in an area with things like 'Horizon Monarch' and 'Leo'. Hybrids certainly not considered easily growable on the east coast. Identical soil and exposure. But guess what, those are doing find and the yuefeng is long gone! HM was slightly burnt this winter and in the prior PV winters, but it recovers quickly. The griffithianum parentage on the paternal side gives it a modicum of heat resistant that the 'Nancy Evans' mother lacks.

I point this out because a certain well-known "non profit" grower of Ericaceous plants is up to their old tricks again, of saying this or that might have some 'heat resistance' based on really scant or tenuous evidence...when it really doesn't. Maybe enough heat resistance for Portland, OR (or Maine!) but not enough for even Long Island and certainly nowhere south of it.

"Recent R. yuefengense offerings are seed grown, and maybe I just got back luck with mine."

Oops, of course I meant "HAD BAD LUCK WITH MINE". LOL.

Looking very healthy!

Another advantage (if you want to call it that) is it's a much later bloomer than other rhododendrons, so you can extend the season.

The other rhododendrons started blooming here late April till the mid-May. It's late May right now, all the other rhododendrons are winding down, but yuefengensis is just beginning to get close to blooming.

Apparently the voracious deer took a little bite out of one of the leaves and then decided it wasn't to their tastes.

That is one cool looking rhodo.

I love the almost circular, lily-pad look to the leaves. It is SOOOoooo cool!

second year, about to bloom:

This survived covered by 18 inches of snow over the past Winter (in case anyone is wondering why the leaves may not look the most healthy)

Olympia, WA

(that's a little fig tree to the left in the background)

yuefengense is a late-bloomer rhododendron, it's now June 3 and all the other rhododendrons have already bloomed, and the flowers fallen off, while yuefengense is just beginning to bloom