The azaleas of the last Saxon kings Albert, Georg and Friedrich August III are on display in the baroque ceremonial rooms of Zuschendorf Castle from 16 April to 1 May 2024. Not the original old examples, of course. The collection has been and will be constantly rejuvenated.
The history of azaleas in Saxony
The azaleas originally stood in the Duchess Garden, right next to the Zwinger. When they bloomed and festivities were held in the neighbouring palace, they were allowed to show off their beauty. However, after the air pollution in Dresden caused by the rapid industrial development at the end of the 19th century became so great that many plants in the Duchess Garden could no longer flower, they had to be relocated. An azalea nursery was created at Moritzburg Palace to house the plants until a new royal court nursery could be built. This was built between 1913 and 1915 in Pillnitz. A large part of the then very modern greenhouses was intended for the azaleas. The king no longer had any of them. During the war, no balls were given in the palace and in 1918 he was expropriated. The nursery became an experimental and model nursery. Dr Alexander Steffen, who ran it, was an excellent expert and himself an azalea lover and breeder of new varieties. After the range survived a second major war with losses, further varieties were bred and the collection preserved even during the GDR era. Only the political upheaval brought radical changes. The marvellous old court nursery was demolished. The only remaining building is a small cultural centre, which was moved to Zuschendorf. The Zuschendorf gardeners also took over the azalea collection and have been presenting it in the castle for several years.
Because of its considerable historical significance, the collection was listed as the second German plant collection after the Zuschendorf camellias of the Seidel gardening family in 2008. The collection of 360 varieties is also part of the German Ornamental Plant Genebank. The ancient varieties from the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century are particularly valuable. Unfortunately, the varieties of the first German azalea breeder, the Dresden gardener Ludwig Leopold Liebig, did not survive the times in Dresden. However, it was a great stroke of luck that some of them were found in the collections of the Austrian Emperor in Vienna-Schönbrunn. Today, they are once again part of the collection. From the Rhododendron Park in Bremen, we mainly received Belgian varieties from the 1920s and 1930s. The collection was expanded by excellent varieties that were bred in Pillnitz, in the Herrmann nursery in Doberlug and in the Risse nursery in Coswig near Dresden.
The latter nursery, Ernst Risse, has accompanied our exhibition in Zuschendorf for many years. Founded in 1854, the company is not only the last producer of camellias in Saxony, but also the custodian of a large number of azalea show plants. These plants of considerable size can also currently be admired in the country palace.
The fascination of azaleas
What was it about the plants that fascinated our king back then, as it does our visitors today? On the one hand, the impressive brilliance of the play of colours from white to pink, red and purple. Secondly, in the old varieties, the beauty of the individual flower was much more at the centre of breeding efforts, if only because of the high-ranking clientele. Today, in times of mass production, this breeding goal is superseded by questions of suitability for modern production methods and transportability.
Convince yourself of the unique beauty and flowering splendour of azaleas.
The history of azaleas in Saxony
The azaleas originally stood in the Duchess Garden, right next to the Zwinger. When they bloomed and festivities were held in the neighbouring palace, they were allowed to show off their beauty. However, after the air pollution in Dresden caused by the rapid industrial development at the end of the 19th century became so great that many plants in the Duchess Garden could no longer flower, they had to be relocated. An azalea nursery was created at Moritzburg Palace to house the plants until a new royal court nursery could be built. This was built between 1913 and 1915 in Pillnitz. A large part of the then very modern greenhouses was intended for the azaleas. The king no longer had any of them. During the war, no balls were given in the palace and in 1918 he was expropriated. The nursery became an experimental and model nursery. Dr Alexander Steffen, who ran it, was an excellent expert and himself an azalea lover and breeder of new varieties. After the range survived a second major war with losses, further varieties were bred and the collection preserved even during the GDR era. Only the political upheaval brought radical changes. The marvellous old court nursery was demolished. The only remaining building is a small cultural centre, which was moved to Zuschendorf. The Zuschendorf gardeners also took over the azalea collection and have been presenting it in the castle for several years.
Because of its considerable historical significance, the collection was listed as the second German plant collection after the Zuschendorf camellias of the Seidel gardening family in 2008. The collection of 360 varieties is also part of the German Ornamental Plant Genebank. The ancient varieties from the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century are particularly valuable. Unfortunately, the varieties of the first German azalea breeder, the Dresden gardener Ludwig Leopold Liebig, did not survive the times in Dresden. However, it was a great stroke of luck that some of them were found in the collections of the Austrian Emperor in Vienna-Schönbrunn. Today, they are once again part of the collection. From the Rhododendron Park in Bremen, we mainly received Belgian varieties from the 1920s and 1930s. The collection was expanded by excellent varieties that were bred in Pillnitz, in the Herrmann nursery in Doberlug and in the Risse nursery in Coswig near Dresden.
The latter nursery, Ernst Risse, has accompanied our exhibition in Zuschendorf for many years. Founded in 1854, the company is not only the last producer of camellias in Saxony, but also the custodian of a large number of azalea show plants. These plants of considerable size can also currently be admired in the country palace.
The fascination of azaleas
What was it about the plants that fascinated our king back then, as it does our visitors today? On the one hand, the impressive brilliance of the play of colours from white to pink, red and purple. Secondly, in the old varieties, the beauty of the individual flower was much more at the centre of breeding efforts, if only because of the high-ranking clientele. Today, in times of mass production, this breeding goal is superseded by questions of suitability for modern production methods and transportability.
Convince yourself of the unique beauty and flowering splendour of azaleas.
