Rhododendron auriculatum Hemsl.

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Credits

Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles

Recommended citation
'Rhododendron auriculatum' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/rhododendron/rhododendron-auriculatum/). Accessed 2024-03-18.

Genus

Other taxa in genus

Glossary

calyx
(pl. calyces) Outer whorl of the perianth. Composed of several sepals.
corolla
The inner whorl of the perianth. Composed of free or united petals often showy.
apex
(pl. apices) Tip. apical At the apex.
auriculate
With one or more auricles.
glabrous
Lacking hairs smooth. glabrescent Becoming hairless.
glandular
Bearing glands.
midrib
midveinCentral and principal vein in a leaf.
setose
Bristly.

Credits

Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles

Recommended citation
'Rhododendron auriculatum' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/rhododendron/rhododendron-auriculatum/). Accessed 2024-03-18.

Small tree, 2–6 m; young shoots setose-glandular. Leaves 15–30 × 4.5–10 cm, oblong to oblong-lanceolate, apex rounded, apiculate, base auriculate, lower surface glabrous or with scattered villous hairs, especially on the veins and midrib. Flowers fragrant, 6–15, in a loose inflorescence; calyx c.2 mm; corolla 7-lobed, white or cream to rosy pink, with greenish colouring inside at base, funnel-shaped, nectar pouches lacking, 80–110 mm; stamens 14; ovary densely stalked-glandular, style glandular to tip. Flowering July-September. Royal Horticultural Society (1997)

Distribution  China E Sichuan, W Hubei, E Guizhou

Habitat 600–2,000 m

RHS Hardiness Rating H5

Awards AM 1922 (Lord Aberconway, Bodnant); flowers white.

Conservation status Vulnerable (VU)

Taxonomic note R. auriculatum is late-flowering. It is allied to species in Subsect. Fortunea but is distinguished by the setose-glandular young shoots and by the large auriculate leaves. Royal Horticultural Society (1997)

An evergreen shrub or small tree 10 to 30 ft high in the wild; branchlets very thick and sturdy. Leaves very large, 6 to 13 in. long, 2 to 5 in. wide, oblong, the apex rounded except for a short abrupt point, the base with two well-marked lobes (or auricles) to which the specific name refers, upper surface dull dark green, hairy on the midrib when young, becoming glabrous, lower surface clothed with rust-coloured hairs, ultimately whitish brown; stalk up to 134 in. long, stout, bristly. The leaf-blade is of very leathery texture. Flowers 3 to 4 in. deep, scarcely as wide at the mouth, funnel-shaped; white or pink, six to eight in a truss; flower-stalk stout, 1 to 112 in. long, glandular-hairy. Calyx small. Corolla seven- or eight-lobed, downy outside; stamens fourteen or sixteen, glabrous. Seed-pod 112 in. long, 12 in. wide. Bot. Mag., t. 8786. (s. Auriculatum)

R. auriculatum was discovered by Augustine Henry in the neighbourhood of Ichang, W. Hupeh, China in 1885, and was described four years later. It also occurs in Szechwan and Kweichow, but is nowhere common. It was introduced by Wilson in 1901 when collecting for Messrs Veitch, and flowered at Caerhays, Cornwall, in 1912, at Kew five years later.

R. auriculatum is remarkable for flowering and starting into growth well after midsummer has passed, July and August being the usual months, though a few buds may open even later. The flowers are fragrant, and the lower part of the young shoots is furnished with lurid crimson scales. But the flowers are apt to brown very quickly if the weather is hot and dry. It is perfectly hardy, but in gardens with a shorter than average growing season the new growths may not ripen sufficiently to withstand an early frost. In the milder parts it has attained a height of 30 ft, but in southern England it is unlikely to exceed 15 ft, though its width is often greater than this. Shade from the hottest sun is essential.

Among the best-known of its hybrids are Polar Bear and ‘Argosy Snow White’.