{{Short description|Species of plant}} {{Redirect|Azalea pontica|''Rhododendron ponticum''|Rhododendron ponticum}} {{Speciesbox | image = Rhododendron luteum (flower).jpg | genus = Rhododendron | display_parents = 2 | parent = Rhododendron sect. Pentanthera | species = luteum | authority = [[Robert Sweet (botanist)|Sweet]] | synonyms = {{collapsible list| *''Anthodendron flavum'' {{small|(Hoffmanns.) Rchb.}} *''Anthodendron ponticum'' {{small|(L.) Rchb.}} *''Azalea flava'' {{small|Hoffmanns.}} *''Azalea pontica'' {{small|L.}} *''Azalea pontica'' var. ''flava'' {{small|(Hoffmanns.) DC.}} *''Rhododendron indicum'' var. ''luteum'' {{small|(Sweet) G.Don}} *''Rhododendron flavum'' {{small|(Hoffmanns.) G.Don}} *''Rhododendron flavum'' var. ''coronarium'' Sweet *''Rhododendron flavum'' f. ''macranthum'' {{small|(Bean) Rehder}} *''Rhododendron flavum'' var. ''macranthum'' {{small|Bean}} *''Rhododendron luteum'' var. ''macranthum'' {{small|(Bean) E.H.Wilson}} }} | synonyms_ref = <ref name="powo">{{Cite POWO|id=3A332817-1|title=''Rhododendron luteum''|access-date=4 March 2023}}</ref> }}

'''''Rhododendron luteum''''', the '''yellow azalea''' or '''honeysuckle azalea''', is a [[species]] of [[flowering plant]] in the heath [[family (botany)|family]] [[Ericaceae]], [[native species|native]] to southeastern Europe and southwest Asia. In Europe, it occurs from southern Poland and Austria, south through the [[Balkans]], and east to southern Russia; and in Asia, east to the [[Caucasus]].

It is a [[shrub]] growing {{convert|3-4|m|ft|abbr=on}}. The leaves are [[deciduous]], 5–10&nbsp;cm long and 2–4&nbsp;cm broad. The flowers are 3–4&nbsp;cm in diameter, bright yellow, and strongly perfumed, produced in trusses of 5–25 together. The fruit is a dry [[capsule (fruit)|capsule]] 15–25&nbsp;mm long, containing numerous small seeds.

The [[nectar]] is [[toxic]], containing the neurotoxin [[grayanotoxin]]; records of [[poisoning]] of people eating the honey date to the 4th century BC in [[Classical Greece]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://csuvth.colostate.edu/poisonous_plants/Plants/Details/111 |title=Guide to poisonous plants: rhododendron |publisher=[[Colorado State University]] |access-date=12 October 2020}}</ref>

==Cultivation and uses== It is widely cultivated in western Europe, used both as an [[ornamental plant]] in its own right, and as a [[rootstock]] onto which other [[azalea]] [[cultivar]]s are [[grafting|grafted]]. It is locally [[naturalisation (biology)|naturalised]] in western and northern Europe. In Great Britain it has colonised many wet [[Heath (habitat)|heaths]] and [[bog]]s, but unlike its relative ''[[Rhododendron ponticum]]'' it does not usually form dominant stands and so is of lower nature conservation concern. However it is listed under Schedule 9 of the UK [[Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981]] as a non-native invasive species. While it is legal to sell and grow it in gardens, users are expected to take care when disposing of material from this plant.

''R. luteum'' has gained the [[Royal Horticultural Society]]'s [[Award of Garden Merit]].<ref name="RHSPF">{{cite web |url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/15369/i-Rhododendron-luteum-i-(A)/Details |title=RHS Plantfinder - ''Rhododendron luteum'' |access-date=3 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/pdfs/agm-lists/agm-ornamentals.pdf |title=AGM Plants - Ornamental |date=July 2017 |page=85 |publisher=Royal Horticultural Society |access-date=2 October 2018}}</ref>

==Cultural references== The plant is depicted in place of the crown above the [[coat of arms]] of the [[Boštanj, Sevnica|Local Community of Boštanj]], Slovenia. It was chosen because the area is one of the few habitats of ''Rhododendron luteum'' in [[Slovenia]]. The coat of arms was created in 1998, during the break-up of the former [[Yugoslavia]].

==Gallery== <gallery> Sarı çiçekli ormangülü-1.jpg Rhododendron luteum i Oslo.jpg|Fruit Rhododendron luteum BotGardBln1105Autumn.JPG|Autumn foliage Hachmann Rhod Goldtopas.jpg|Cultivar 'Goldtopas' Natural vegetation of Rhododendron luteum 04.jpg|''Rhododendron luteum'' in the wild </gallery>

==References== {{Commons|Rhododendron luteum}} {{Reflist}} *[http://rbg-web2.rbge.org.uk/cgi-bin/nph-readbtree.pl/feout?FAMILY_XREF=&GENUS_XREF=Rhododendron+&SPECIES_XREF=luteum+&TAXON_NAME_XREF=&RANK= Flora Europaea: ''Rhododendron luteum''] *{{GRIN}} *[http://www.habitas.org.uk/gardenflora/rhodoluteum.htm UK garden flora: ''Rhododendron luteum''] *[http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?Rhododendron+luteum Plants for a Future: ''Rhododendron luteum''] *[http://home.earthlink.net/~rhodyman2/rhodytox.html Rhododendron Poisoning: ''Rhododendron luteum''] *[http://www.rhododendron.dk/luteum.html Danish web-site, photo's: ''Rhododendron luteum'']

{{Taxonbar|from=Q2591210}}

[[Category:Rhododendron|luteum]] [[Category:Flora of Armenia]] [[Category:Flora of Austria]] [[Category:Flora of Azerbaijan]] [[Category:Flora of Belarus]] [[Category:Flora of Georgia (country)]] [[Category:Flora of Greece]] [[Category:Flora of Italy]] [[Category:Flora of Moldova]] [[Category:Flora of Poland]] [[Category:Flora of Russia]] [[Category:Flora of Slovenia]] [[Category:Flora of Turkey]] [[Category:Flora of Ukraine]]