We have a native kalmia latifolia that we actually moved from our spot in the woods in the mountains to our yard here. It's planted in perhaps a slightly too shady spot, but in enough sun to bloom really well, along with the azaleas it's planted alongside. The plant is competing with the azaleas for the light because they've been there so long (around 35 years) that they've been overcrowded for a long time. They all grow toward the side with the most available sunlight, the same as the azaleas do. (Light is blocked from all but one direction by larger ajacent rhododendrons.)

We have some other kalmias that were purchased and those are growing in a good amount of sun or too little sun. Those are not growing sideways, even the two in too little sun. They do tend to get bushier in more sun, but the overall direction for any of them is still not sideways to one side or another, but fairly balanced all around. Those in too much shade (from very tall deciduous trees all around) are a bit leggy and they don't bloom as well as the others. They perhaps lean a bit more southerly but they don't grow sideways.

Perhaps your kalmias are like our natives that are growing toward the one direction where they can get the strongest light, even if it's not direct sunlight? The lower your shade trees, the lower the kalmia would have to slant itself in order to maximize the available light to it. It might be getting enough sun through that growth adjustment to bloom reasonably well, but might not be quite so attractive overall as you might wish. It seems to me that a camellia in that spot might try to do the same thing, and would likely at least not grow as upright in that location as in some other spot, even a shady spot, if the shade were coming more evenly. The question might eventually come down to how you like the shape of the plant in that location, as it might bloom reasonably well. If you can tweak the spot to move it out from under any lower trees like dogwoods, even if it has more shade from the tall deciduous trees, you might like it better. Just a guess, though.

I love ivy and we once had a yard full of a "slow-growing" variety, started from a pinch of some else's. It was slow-growing the first year, and I so longed for it to spread more rapidly! Well, it must have read my mind, because it got started after a year or two, and when it got started, you wouldn't believe how active it became. It killed some azaleas and got a pretty good start on killing some larger trees too. We still do have some ivy that needs removing before it kills a tree that is probably 150 feet tall. I still do love its looks, but now I think the most ivy I'd ever have again would be something in a pot, maybe indoors, with an expectation that at least indoors there'd be some limit to how deeply and thickly it could send down its roots!

Well, good luck with your Taylor's Perfection. Please let us know how it does, along with some pictures, if possible.

Best wishes,
Mary