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Key characteristics

Family: Ericaceae
Height: 1 to 2 ft
Width: 1.5 to 3 ft
Flower color: Clear soft yellow blooms, light green-yellow funnel-shaped flowers
Foliage color: Evergreen, dark green leaves small leaves
Bloom time: Early to mid spring (April)
Light: Part sun to part shade
Water: Moderate
Maintenance: Low; deadhead spent flowers and prune lightly only when needed
Growing zone: USDA zones 6a to 9b
Wildlife: Spring flowers attract bees and other pollinators; evergreen structure offers shelter and cover for small birds and other garden wildlife

Shrubs

Rhododendron 'Patty Bee'

Patty Bee Rhododendron

Rhododendron 'Patty Bee' is a dwarf evergreen shrub with a compact, rounded habit and small dark green leaves that may bronze in winter. In mid-spring it carries trusses of funnel-shaped flowers about 2 inches across. The blooms are soft pale yellow to light green-yellow with gently wavy lobes, adding clear color at the front of borders, in rock gardens, or in containers.

Raised as a small-leaved hybrid and later awarded the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit, 'Patty Bee' is valued for its neat form and dependable display.

Light

Part sun to part shade

Water

Moderate

Bloom time

Early to mid spring (April)

Find this plant

Works well in

Shade Gardens
Borders
Slopes & Banks
Woodland Gardens

Companion plants

Yew · Oregon grape · Corydalis · Hosta · Anemone · Foamflower

Design tip

Repeat ‘Patty Bee’ along the front of a planting or across a gentle slope, allowing its low rounded form to connect larger plants visually. Its compact scale also makes a useful transition between taller shrubs and rocks, paving, or other hardscape.