What is your sun exposure in this location? I used to have encore azaleas as foundation plantings at my house, but I ripped them all out because in my full-sun location they became severely infested with spider mites. I moved them to a partly shaded area (3-4 hours afternoon sun only) where they do much better. I plan on getting rid of them eventually, though, because I find their reblooming to be kind of pitiful and not worth the hassle of continually having to remove spent blooms all summer. If you have a partly or mostly shaded location, I suggest you consider a rhododendron. There are many varieties that would be about the size ( 4 x 4 ) that you want...and even though they bloom only once a year, they are gorgeous when they do, and are nice evergreen shrubs for the rest the year.

Oops...I said spider mites when I meant lace bugs. Duh!

What type of rhododendren would you recommend? How about the non-encore azalea? Are they not in the rhododendren family?

Sorry it took me a little long to get back to you! As for suggestions, I would say that your best bet would be to take a trip to your local nursery in a couple months when they get their new stock in to see the varieties they might reccommmend as being best for your area. The benefit to doing this is that you'll be able to see first-hand what the blooms look like, as well as what the general habit of the shrub is. When I decided to put in my current foundation planting of rhododendrons I did just that...the variety I have ('English Roseum') is reasonably sun tolerant for me, though I do have to be diligent with watering it in the summer. In my experience, SOME rhododendrons can handle nearly full sun when azaleas in the same location would succumb to lace bugs. Since I don't know anything about your growing conditions, I really am not in a position to suggest specific varieties...maybe others will chime in. Anyway, you have LOTS of options. Why not check out the American Rhododendron Society's website? They actually have a search engine where you can type in your desired size, flower color, etc and a list of rhodos (or azaleas) matching that description will appear.

Because you mention that you had tried to grow roses in this area, I am guessing that you have a sunny exposure in this location. Depending on how sunny it is, you may want to consider another kind of shrub...in my experience, it's difficult to grow rhodos (or azaleas...same genus, I think, and similar growing parameters) well in sunny spots in areas with hot summers. Gardenias might be an option...they'll cope with sun and heat just fine...they'll eventually get to the size you need and they do have the most wonderful flowers (I have one and I love it). Perhaps an Abelia would work--there are many varieties, some with showy blooms that attract hummingbirds and are fragrant. You may want to look into getting some Viburnums...they flower (often fragrantly) in spring, have outstanding fall foliage, and some types set attractive berries in the winter.

There are many options for you! Best of luck and good gardening.

Claire

I need to replace 6 shrubs. Do you think a double-bloom gardenia would be the way to go? Or maybe three gardenias and three other flowering shrubs just to compliment them? I have two dwarf gardenias in another part of the house.

Living in Pennsylvania, I am not a gardenia person. Back to rhododendrons and azaleas. If you are in South Carolina, I assume you have both sun and heat.

One problem in growing rhododendrons in hot climates is root rot. Many rhododendrons are quite susceptible to root rot, especially when soil temperatures get higher. In areas with cool nights, one can keep soil temperatures down with shade and mulch. In areas where cool nights are not common, this won't work. We must remember also that too much shade causes a poor flower bud set on many varieties.

The quest for heat tolerant rhododendrons has focused on the very heat tolerant Rhodendron hyperythrum. This species has been used in hybridizing a number of heat tolerant offspring, including R. 'Hypermax' (R. hyperythrum x R. maximum), R. 'Charles Loomis' ('English Roseum' x R. hyperythrum), R. 'Peppermint Twist' (R. hyperythrum x R. Hexe) and R. 'Michelle Smith' (R. 'Scintillation' x R. hyperythrum)

Other rhododendron varieties known for their heat tolerance include: 'Aunt Martha', 'Blue Jay', 'Blue Peter', 'Boule de Neige', 'Brilliant', 'Chapmanii Wonder', 'Cynthia', 'English Roseum', 'Evening Glow', 'Goldsworth Orange', 'Lady Clementine Mitford', 'Mrs. Charles E. Pearson', 'Myrtifolium', 'Odoratum', 'PJM', 'Platinum Pearl', and 'Red Eye'.

To avoid lace bug problems you need to select rhododendron varieties that do well in full sun. Among this list are eight are also sun and cold tolerant: 'Aunt Martha' (-10F), 'Blue Jay' (-10F), 'Blue Peter' (-10F), 'Boule de Neige' (-25F) , 'Cynthia' (-15F), 'English Roseum' (-25F), 'Myrtifolium' (-15F), and 'PJM' (-25F).

Here are some azaleas to consider for full sun including some encore varieties:

‘Autumn Amethyst™’, -10F, Low/Med. This lavender is one of the Encore® reblooming azaleas.

‘Autumn Cheer™’, -10F, Low. This pink is one of the Encore® reblooming azaleas.

‘Autumn Rouge™’, -5F, Low/Med. This bright pink is one of the Encore® reblooming azaleas.

‘Autumn Royalty™’, -10F, Med. This purple is one of the Encore® reblooming azaleas.

‘Autumn Sangria™’, -10F, Med. This dark pink is one of the Encore® reblooming azaleas.

‘Autumn Twist™’, -10F, Med. This white with purple markings is one of the Encore® reblooming azaleas.

‘Deciduous Azaleas’, Most deciduous azaleas are hardy to -25°F, grow well in the sun and really can be grown practically anywhere. They frequently are poor bloomers in the shade.

‘Flame Creeper’, Late, -10F, Dwarf. Noted for its tolerance of full sun, this reliable azalea displays a profusion of scarlet-orange flowers. It makes a good ground cover with its small leaves and creeping habit.

‘Hino Crimson’, Early, -10F, Low/Med. Bright crimson flowers unfold in April, and holding their color well. This attribute, coupled with sun tolerance and red winter foliage, makes ‘Hino Crimson' an excellent all around choice. Planted in the open, it grows to a dense 2½' mound, although it adapts well for use as hedging.

‘Hinode-giri’, Early, -5F, Medium. One of the more sun-tolerant hybrids, this azalea produces multitudes of rose-crimson flowers early to mid-season. Small, glossy leaves turn bright red in winter on this dense plant.

‘Stewartstonian’, Early, -20F, Medium. A sun tolerant hybrid, ‘Stewartstonian' displays lush red 2' blooms that, in the light, appear blood orange. Winter foliage deepens to wine red, making it an excellent winter foliage plant.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rhododendrons and azaleas for sun.

I apologize for the strange characters. This should work:

Here are some azaleas to consider for full sun including some encore varieties:

'Autumn Amethyst', -10F, Low/Med. This lavender is one of the Encore reblooming azaleas.

'Autumn Cheer', -10F, Low. This pink is one of the Encore reblooming azaleas.

'Autumn Rouge', -5F, Low/Med. This bright pink is one of the Encore reblooming azaleas.

'Autumn Royalty', -10F, Med. This purple is one of the Encore reblooming azaleas.

'Autumn Sangria', -10F, Med. This dark pink is one of the Encore reblooming azaleas.

'Autumn Twist', -10F, Med. This white with purple markings is one of the Encore reblooming azaleas.

'Deciduous Azaleas', Most deciduous azaleas are hardy to -25F, grow well in the sun and really can be grown practically anywhere. They frequently are poor bloomers in the shade.

'Flame Creeper', Late, -10F, Dwarf. Noted for its tolerance of full sun, this reliable azalea displays a profusion of scarlet-orange flowers. It makes a good ground cover with its small leaves and creeping habit.

'Hino Crimson', Early, -10F, Low/Med. Bright crimson flowers unfold in April, and holding their color well. This attribute, coupled with sun tolerance and red winter foliage, makes 'Hino Crimson' an excellent all around choice. Planted in the open, it grows to a dense 2.5' mound, although it adapts well for use as hedging.

'Hinode-giri', Early, -5F, Medium. One of the more sun-tolerant hybrids, this azalea produces multitudes of rose-crimson flowers early to mid-season. Small, glossy leaves turn bright red in winter on this dense plant.

'Stewartstonian', Early, -20F, Medium. A sun tolerant hybrid, 'Stewartstonian' displays lush red 2' blooms that, in the light, appear blood orange. Winter foliage deepens to wine red, making it an excellent winter foliage plant.