杜鵑屬常綠灌木，園藝雜交品種群。嫩枝及葉片有腺毛，觸摸有黏性。橢圓形至披針形葉，互生於枝端。花冠裂片有紫色斑點。臺灣常見品種有紫色的「大紫」、粉紅色的「曙」以及白色的「白妙」。開花期春季。

This horticultural hybrid is an evergreen shrub in the genus Rhododendron. The glandular hairs grown on the shoots and blades, sticky. Leaves oval to lanceolate in shape, alternate and apical. Corolla lobes with purple flecks. The common varieties in Taiwan are purple "big purple", pink "shu", and white "baimiao". Flowering in spring.

適合全日照環境。喜好酸性介質。杜鵑根纖細，忌施用過多肥料。開花後對新枝進行摘心，入夏後不再進行修剪以免修除花芽。春季會常見杜鵑三節葉蜂的幼蟲嚴重吃食葉片。繁殖使用扦插法為主。

The plant grows in full sun environment and prefers acidic medium. This rhododendron produces slender roots which don’t withstand excessive fertilizer. After flowering period, pinch off the top buds on the shoots and stop pruning when entering summer to avoid cutting off flower buds accidentally. Beware of Arge similis larvae because they nibble off the leaves. Propagated mainly by cuttings.

對車輛廢汽與都市人工環境的高溫有較強的抵抗力，常作為道路綠帶、分隔島綠美化使用。也可多株叢植為灌叢或列植為綠籬，因枝葉交錯具有良好的阻隔效果。台北市陽明山區與臺灣大學校園因廣植平戶杜鵑而聞名。

It’s commonly planted in the green belts or medians of main roads because of their tolerance to vehicle exhaust gas and heat in urban areas. It’s suitably planted in clusters as shrubs or in rows as hedges with screening effects thanks to the intertwining branches and leaves. Taipei's Yangmingshan District and the campus of National Taiwan University are well known for widely planting this lovely rhododendron.