Specific Families and Genera > Rhododendron and other Ericaceae
Rhododendrons April 2008
johnw:
Tom - Thanks so much for the wonderful pictures from Benmore. The R. grande is supremely beautiful and those skunk cabbages are a joy. The latter seem late here though the flower buds are just moving now that the weather has warmed up.
Attached is the Ludlow & Sherriff #2847 thomsonii just beginning to open yesterday in the south where it was 21c, so, in some regards, we are not too far behind . Also what I think is an auriculatum with an exceptional habit - from Peter Wharton's 1994 Guizhou seed collection. Finally I found 2 buds on a 6ft rex Berkley x rex Quartz (again 1994) - this may well be the first rex to ever flower east of Canadian Rockies. The buds are on the north side of the plant just to confound the experts.
johnw
tboland:
John, I'd like to say I had ANY rhody about to bloom but who am I kidding! However, at the Bot. Garden (Memorial University of Newfoundland Botanical Garden) our coldhouse is warmer than outside and the first rhodies have opened probably a month earlier than those outside. Here is Madison Snow and (impeditum X moupinense)...I am dubious about that hybrid. What do you think John?
johnw:
re: impeditum x moupinense
Todd - It's certainly hard to see any moupinense there, the leaves are closer in size to impeditum than the mean of the two species. And yet I would be hard pressed to explain the pink flower, pinker than I remember. What other species would give that pink and cross with impeditum. Hmm? The flower size is not intermediate either.
Coincidental than you should post that as I talking to the hybridizer Cpt. Steele tonight. I mentioned that moupinense itself seemed fully hardy in the south here, unfortunately mine is a white one. The impeditum x moupinense came up in the conversation as I lost mine and he lost his back-ups, both caused by shade. He asked if I could round up a few cuttings in Newfoundland!
Madison Snow looks great and may be one of the very best Leach selections, strange as he was noted for his elepidotes.
johnw
johnw:
--- Quote from: tboland on April 20, 2008, 12:19:31 AM --- (impeditum X moupinense)...I am dubious about that hybrid. What do you think John?
--- End quote ---
Todd - I'm still pondering... I think of 'Ramapo' which is fastigiatum x carolinianum or the reverse with leaves not that much bigger than fastigiatum. So maybe it is possible the parentage of this hybrid is correct. The leaves certainly have a lustre we don't associate with impeditum, from moupinense perhaps. Here's another thought, impeditum sold, in North America at least, are in fact fastigiatum. I wonder if Steele had the true species back then as it would have been quite a rarity. Maybe fastigiatum x moupinense is more likely.
johnw
tboland:
The habit of the hybrid in question is quite like Ramapo, expect the flowers are pinkish, so maybe Steele did indeed use fastigiatum.
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