Azalea Sports: When a Branch Blooms a Different Color

What Is an Azalea Sport?

Occasionally an azalea produces a “sport”—a branch with flowers of a different color than the parent plant. This natural mutation can be an improvement or a plain-looking bloom. Keen gardeners watch for interesting sports and propagate them to create new cultivars.

Famous Example: ‘George L. Taber’

The popular ‘George L. Taber’ azalea originated as a sport of the reddish-pink ‘Omurasaki’. Dr. Harold Hume spotted the light pink flower with a dark pink blotch at Glen Saint Mary Nursery in Florida and named it for his employer. If you notice a distinct sport on your azalea, observe it for a few years and consider propagating it—you might introduce the next ‘Lou’s Beauty’!