Azaleas can be either evergreen or deciduous. Deciduous Azaleas are known as Mollis or Exbury Azaleas. They bloom in the early spring with vivid orange and yellow colors. They can be grown from seed if the seeds are collected in the fall and sown on top of moist peat at about 70 degrees F.
Evergreen Azaleas are known as broad leaf evergreens because they do not have needles. They bloom later in the spring, and are usually propagated in the fall over bottom heat discussed in detail at http://www.freeplants.com Rhododendrons are also broad leaf evergreens and are also propagated over bottom heat in early winter.
The best time to prune Rhododendrons and Azaleas is in the spring right after they bloom. These plants start setting next year