Although there are other possibilities, I'd say that's the Rhododendron macrosepalum hybrid called 'Koromo Shkibu'.
Many thanks for your reply, however, I Googled "Rhododendron macrosepalum hybrid called 'Koromo Shkibu' "and it bears no resemblance to the plant I have. See: http://www.paghat.com/koromo.html
It is interesting, because to me it looks identical, see http://rslandscapedesign.blogspot.ca/2010/03/cercis-redbuds.html. Scroll down the page (about 1/3) until you see "'Kokomo-shikibu' More vigorous, reaching up to 6 feet in 8 years. * photo taken on April 18 2010 @ U.S. National Arboretum"
Perhaps not exactly the same but certainly similar - and having a great deal more than "no" resemblance! Probably grown enough that a local independent nursery would have a name for it - especially one that stocked a large number of different kinds of azaleas.
Geoff, My apologies! The azalea was misspelled and should have read "Kokomo-shikibu" instead of " Koromo Shkibu." UBC contributor 'Sundrop' was kind enough to make a positive identification. Best regards, Gerry
Transliterated Japanese cultivar names often have closely similar spellings but refer to different plants. It is also true that the same plant can have more than one name in use, same as here.
