Family
Ericaceae
Description
‘White Lightning’ is a cultivated form of sweet azalea, a deciduous native shrub prized for its fragrant, late-spring to early-summer blooms. This selection features pure white, funnel-shaped flowers with prominent red stamens and a strong spicy-sweet scent, evocative of cloves or cinnamon. Like the species, it thrives in moist, acidic woodland soils and dappled shade, making it a standout in naturalized or shade garden settings where scent and structure are desired after many spring azaleas have faded.
Native R. arborescens ranges across the Appalachian region, often along streambanks and in cool, rocky forest soils. Though ‘White Lightning’ is a horticultural cultivar, its parent species contributes to the genetic backbone of many Eastern native azalea hybrids.
Bloom Time
May to July
