 |
The second part of my grand plan to recreate the Rhododendron Loderi Group depended on getting hold of a plant of R. griffithianum.
It is not common in cultivation because it requires a mild climate to prosper. Fortuitously I was able to buy this seedling
raised from Trees and Shrubs online says: "A distinctive species that requires a mild climate in Britain and is thus rare in cultivation. It has been used widely to produce many worthy garden hybrids. An evergreen shrub, or occasionally a small tree, with erect branches and peeling bark. It is quite devoid of down or hairs in all its parts. Native of the Himalaya from E. Nepal eastward, and of the Mishmi Hills, Assam, apparently everywhere uncommon; described from a specimen collected by Griffith in Bhutan; introduced in 1850 by J. D. Hooker from Sikkim, where he found it growing at 7,000 to 9,000 ft in the inner ranges. In some respects this is the finest of all rhododendrons, especially in regard to the size and width of the individual flower, which resembles some fine lily and is occasionally 7 in. across. But it is variable in the size both of its flowers and of its leaves. R. griffithianum is not hardy near London, but in the mildest parts it has a height and width of 20 ft or even more. |
|
| 4th June 2024 | ||