Traditional azaleas bloom on old wood, meaning the plants form the next year's buds soon after they flower.

Encore evergreen azaleas bloom on new wood, producing a flourish of spring blooms. New shoots appear, suddenly start growing and start setting buds for the late summer and fall seasons.

``They are called repeat bloomers,'' says Aimee Coker of Flowerwood wholesale growers in the southeastern part of the country.

Locally, you can find some varieties of Encore at Tidewater Nurseries and Anderson Garden Center in Newport News; McDonald Garden Centers in Hampton, Chesapeake and Virginia Beach; and Smithfield Gardens in Suffolk. The azaleas, which will be subject to availability from the grower, come in one- and three-gallon sizes.

Growing conditions for Encore azaleas are similar to traditional azaleas: well-drained, slightly acidic soil with light or afternoon shade. Plantings of these azaleas should not be fertilized until last spring frost. Prune them mid-May to June, right after spring blooming like you do regular azaleas, says John Wise, horticulturist at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, where 18 plants from the first six Encore varieties have been growing for the past year.

``They bloom and bloom and bloom,'' says Wise. ``There is a long stretch of good-sized flowers and good color.'' He especially likes their growth habits and foliage.

This spring, the Encores were not as showy as the traditional azaleas but the new varieties started perking up when the others faded out, Wise says. Early August, one was putting out blooms.

AUTUMN COLORS

The cold-hardy series - called Encore Autumn - of repeat-blooming azaleas features eight varieties with color ranges that include no white:

Autumn Rouge - Semi-double blooms in a strong pink, almost red, color. Plant grows upright and flowers early July through fall.

Autumn Royalty - Single large blooms in rich purple on foliage that's large and dark green. Flowers July to frost.

Autumn Coral - Mounding growth habit with medium-sized blooms that are salmon pink with fuchsia flecking.

Autumn Embers - low, spreading, dense growth with single and semi-double blooms in a deep orange-red. Lots of fall flowering.

Autumn Amethyst - Most cold hardy of the Autumn series with foliage that's elgonated, pointed and rough in texture. Leaves take on nice dark cast in winter. Blooms are soft purple; growth habit dense and spreading. Flowering begins early September.

Autumn Cheer - Deep pink flowers early August through fall; slightly larger than Kurume-type flowers. Most compact of Autumn cultivars.

Autumn Monarch - Semi-double coral flowers, highlighted with deep reddish-purple flecking; slightly ruffled. Upright grower has bright green elliptical leaves.

Autumn Bravo - Bright red, single to semi-double, two-inch blooms; full upright grower with rich green oval foliage.