At 7:49 on October 17, 2016, 20,000 azalea seeds of four azalea varieties of Jinhua Yonggen Azalea Breeding Co., Ltd. were launched by the Shenzhou 11 rocket at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center and entered space accurately. Yonggen Azalea opens a new era of azalea space radiation breeding.

Four azaleas selected for space breeding are R. championae, R. mole, R. ovatum, and R. ‘Hongyang’ (bred by Yonggen). The color of the above verities is not brilliant, while the invisible gene that determines the color is difficult to improve by conventional breeding methods. Through radiation breeding under the condition of weightlessness in space, the gene of these verities would be mutated, which allows us to cultivate new and excellent varieties with brighter colors, larger plant shapes, stronger fragrances, and stronger characteristics in the future.