For many years have been researching the history and characteristics of North American azaleas both in the literature and in the field. Even today, this complex group of plants is poorly understood and perhaps poorly defined by the current 17 species. Needed are systematic DNA research with carefully chosen samples, other cytological and chemical research (e.g., flavonoids, etc.), more ploidy and hybridization research, and more field research (distribution, habitat, population analyses, pollination, etc.).