Rhodo Rage

This time of year, the outlook is bright in the mountains. After all, about a dozen Rhododendron species flower throughout the Smokies, painting our higher elevations in shades of pink, purple, scarlet, and white. (Remember: All azaleas are rhododendrons, but not all rhodos are azaleas.)

Pretty in pink: Endemic to Western North Carolina and discovered by George Vasey in 1878, the pinkshell azalea appears to cling magically to rock faces at high elevations. Grandfather Mountain claims to be home to the world’s largest population of pinkshell, but you can also find them along the Blue Ridge Parkway from Mount Pisgah to Waterrock Knob. How to identify: This deciduous, leggy shrub reaches up to 10 feet tall and begins to flower in mid-May before new leaves unfurl. Intermediate between most rhodos and azaleas, the pinkshell features 5 to 7 stamens (most rhodos have 10 and most azaleas have 5) and a short corolla tube more like rhododendrons than most of the tubelike corollas of other azaleas.

Purple haze: Hot on the heels in the blooming season is the purple-flowered Catawba rhododendron, so named because John Fraser discovered the flower along the Catawba River as he collected plants for the Emperor of Russia in 1809. Dense high-elevation stands like Roan Mountain, Newfound Gap in the Smokies, and the Blue Ridge Parkway’s Craggy Gardens (milepost 364) and Woolyback Overlook (milepost 452) create breathtaking seas of purple. Bakersville celebrates the annual spectacle with the Rhododendron Festival (this year on June 19 and 20). How to identify: This evergreen plant features dark green, leathery leaves that measure three to six inches long. Showy purple flowers sit at the end of the branches like bright purple snow cones.

Flame on: Dizzying arrays of flame azaleas—from lemon yellow to burnt orange to scarlet—will set the summer mountains on fire beginning in mid-June, such as at Gregory Bald in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. From June through August, the rosebay—the most common rhodo in the Smokies—shines white light from the forested shadows.