Rhododendron clementinae Forr.

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Credits

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

Recommended citation
'Rhododendron clementinae' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/rhododendron/rhododendron-clementinae/). 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.
Tibet
Traditional English name for the formerly independent state known to its people as Bod now the Tibet (Xizang) Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China. The name Xizang is used in lists of Chinese provinces.
apex
(pl. apices) Tip. apical At the apex.
corolla
The inner whorl of the perianth. Composed of free or united petals often showy.
glabrous
Lacking hairs smooth. glabrescent Becoming hairless.
ovary
Lowest part of the carpel containing the ovules; later developing into the fruit.
style
Generally an elongated structure arising from the ovary bearing the stigma at its tip.

Credits

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

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

Shrub, 1–3 m. Leaves (6.5–)9.5–14 × (3–)4.5–8 cm, ovate-lanceolate, apex rounded, obtuse, base rounded to cordate, lower surface with a thick whitish to buff two-layered indumentum, the upper layer lanate-tomentose, composed of ramiform hairs, the lower compacted; petioles glabrous when mature. Flowers 10–15, in a dense truss; calyx c.1 mm; corolla 7-lobed, white to deep rose, with purple flecks, campanulate, nectar pouches lacking, 40–50 mm; ovary and style glabrous. Flowering April-May. Royal Horticultural Society (1997)

Distribution  China NW Yunnan, SW Sichuan

Habitat 3,350–3,950 m

RHS Hardiness Rating H6

Conservation status Data deficient (DD)

Taxonomic note The above description applies to subsp. clementinae as this is the only form in cultivation. This is a distinctive species on account of its 7-lobed corolla. Royal Horticultural Society (1997)

An evergreen shrub 4 ft and upwards high in the wild, with stout, stiff young shoots, leaf-buds four-angled. Leaves oval, mostly heart-shaped at the base, rounded at the apex, 212 to 5 in. long, rather more than half as much wide, dull green and without down at maturity above, covered beneath with a soft, thick, pale brown felt; stalk 12 to 34 in. long. Flowers produced in a terminal truss of seven to fifteen flowers. Calyx minute. Corolla bell-shaped, creamy white flushed with rose or bright rose usually dotted with crimson, 2 in. wide, six- or seven-lobed; stamens double the number of the corolla lobes, scarcely half the length of the corolla, downy at the base; ovary and style glabrous. Bot. Mag., t. 9392. (s. and ss. Taliense)

Native of S.W. Szechwan, N.W. Yunnan, and S.E. Tibet; discovered by Forrest in 1913 on the Chungtien plateau and introduced by him. He evidendy thought highly of this species, which he dedicated to his wife, but in cultivation it is unremarkable in its flowers and worth growing only for its handsome foliage, which is steely blue when young. It is perfectly hardy.