Here's what the Missouri Botanical Garden says about culture for Rhododendrons and azaleas:

"Culture

Best grown in acidic, organically rich, humusy, medium moisture, moisture-retentive but well-drained soils in part shade. Prefers a sun dappled or high open shade. Morning sun with afternoon shade is also acceptable. Tolerates a fair amount of sun in cool northern summers, but leaves may scorch in hot afternoon sun in the St. Louis area. Plant in a location protected from strong winds. Plants perform well on north or east facing slopes. Do not site plants within or near the drip line of trees in the walnut family (most rhododendrons/azaleas are sensitive to toxic juglones produced by roots of walnuts, butternuts, pecans and hickories). Good soil drainage is essential (plants do not like “wet feet”). Poor drainage inevitably leads to root rot, therefore raised beds/plantings should be considered in heavy clay soils such as those present in much of the St. Louis area. Shallow, fibrous root systems (do not cultivate around plants) will benefit greatly from a mulch (e.g., wood chips, bark or pine needles) to help retain moisture and stabilize soil temperatures. Roots must never be allowed to dry out. Acidify soils as needed (plants generally like soil pH in the range of 5.0 to 5.5). Add sulfur or iron sulfate to soils to lower the pH. Add limestone or lime to soils to raise the pH. Clip off spent flower clusters immediately after bloom as practicable."

So in general azaleas take a fair amount of careful in planting to grow well in your area since much of the St. Louis region has clay soils and higher pH soils than are ideal for anything in the genus Rhododendron (which includes all azaleas as well.)

They have a great resource on line, their PlantFinder. You can put in growing conditions or size or plant name (common or scientific) to get info on particular plants or ones that meet certain size or cultural requirements, and you can leave much of the form blank if you want more choices or fill in more of the blanks if you want to narrow the choices. You can also visit the garden to see in person how these plants do in your area.

Boudoir at Missouri Botanical Garden

Galmour at Missouri Botanical Garden

Stewartstonian at Missouri Botanical Garden

Thank you, Babs. I did go on their site before posting (that’s how i narrowed down my list to just 3 azaleas from the 10 I was considering! Lol). However, I completely forgot that they have a giant azalea garden at Botanical. The weather here has been up and down, so none of the azaleas have bloomed yet (and Botanical has been way too cold to walk through).

Once it warms up “for good”, I’ll venture over.

I did end up going to Glamour though since it was the best looking plant at the nursery.

Now might be a good time to visit to see what if any damage you might expect to see at winter's end. I was most concerned about the soil conditions being right in the bed where you plant them since without suitable soil for azaleas, it doesn't matter which variety you grow. Many folks who show up on these forums don't understand that certain plants won't grow without their specific needs being met. Where I live the soil is perfect for Rhodies, but I need to be careful about hardiness.

Babs, good idea to go look now and see winter damage. I'll give it a shot, since I'll want to add more azaleas for a new bed I'm building.

The bed I'm going to plant in is acidic (i tested it to be sure) and already has azaleas in it. For some wonderful reason a lot of the soil here is acidic (lots of houses with decades old Rhodies).

I always worry about buying a plant or shrub that won't thrive in my beds, so I try to do as much reading and asking before hand. I know that a lot of people don't do this, however. :(