Details
'Praecox' is a small, more-or-less evergreen shrub, to 1.2m tall or more, with dark, glossy oval leaves and widely funnel-shaped, rosy-purple flowers, 4cm in width, in small clusters at the branch tips from late winter

Hardiness
H6 - Hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)

Aspect
South-facing or West-facing or East-facing

Exposure
Sheltered

Moisture
Moist but well-drained

Soil
 
Sand, Clay, Loam
 
 
pH
 
Acid
 
 
Size
Ultimate height
1-1.5 metres
Ultimate spread
1-1.5 metres
Time to ultimate height
5-10 years
 
 
How to grow
Cultivation
Grow in moist but well-drained, leafy, humus-rich acid soil, best in part shade with shelter but grows well in full sun if soil remains reliably moist; see rhododendron cultivation
Propagation
Propagate by semi-ripe cuttings in late summer, layering in autumn or grafting in late summer or late winter
Suggested planting locations and garden types
Low Maintenance Cottage & Informal Garden City & Courtyard Gardens

How to care
Pruning
Pruning group 8
Pests
May be attacked by vine weevil, rhododendron leafhopper, pieris lacebug, scale insects, caterpillars and aphids
Diseases
May be affected by various Rhododendron diseases including powdery mildews, rhododendron petal blight, rhododendron bud blast, silver leaf and honey fungus