Rhododendron

Рододендрон

Rhododendron caucasicum Credit: Tatyana Shulkina

Evergreen spreading shrub about 1,0 m. Branches thick with dark brown bark. Leaves oblong or elliptic, matt dark green, with a thin fawn tomentum beneath, 4-12 cm long, 2-4 cm wide. Flowers 7-10 in compact trusses, widely funnel or bell-shaped, white with light green (later red) dotes within. In nature flowers May-July. Cold resistant, but not very much dry resistant. The true type species with white flowers is rare in cultivation. Z 5 (4).

Caucasus (the Great Caucasus and Transcaucasus), northern Turkey (Lazistan). On northern rocky slopes at 1,600-3,000 m, usually on lime free soil.

The close related species is R. smirnowii Trutv., that occurs in southwestern Caucasis. Shrub taller than R. caucasicum, being 1,5 m high, flowers bright pink.