In Chinese culture, the azalea is known as "thinking of home bush" (sixiang shu) and is immortalized in the poetry of Du Fu and is used to rich effect in contemporary stories such as by Taiwanese author Pai, Hsien-Yung.
Azalea is the hometown of decathlete and Olympian Tom Pappas.
The Asticou Azalea Garden in Northeast Harbor, Maine, United States, is a popular visitor attraction.
Here some extensive collections have been created of Hydrangea, azalea, Deutzia and other genera.
Schools within the neighborhood include Azalea Park Elementary School, Chickasaw Elementary School, Dover Shores Elementary, Englewood Elementary School, Stonewall Jackson Middle School, and Colonial High School.
The garden has a large number of flowering plants including camellias, azaleas, flowering quince, roses, magnolia trees, redbud trees, and others.
In addition to a focus on Northwest native plants, the Arboretum has one of the world's largest collections of the Western Azalea (Rhododendron occidentale), with over 200 selections of the species.
Some of them are open to the public (guided visits only), including the large collections of azaleas and other Ericaceae (No. 6), ferns (No. 15), cacti and other succulents (No. 16), various tropical plants (No. 18), the 23.5 m high Big Palm Greenhouse with an important collection of orchids (No. 26) and the greenhouse with a pond containing Victoria amazonica (no. 28).
Heather Dixon's novel, "Entwined", retells the story from the point of view of Azalea, the oldest of the 12 sisters.