found from New-England to North-Carolina. In its native 

 foil it attains the height of fixteen feet. 



There is much affinity between this tree and the Rhodo- 

 dendron ponticum, nor do the diftinguifhing characters 

 adopted by Willdenow feem fufficient ; for the leaves of the 

 latter are not of the fame colour on the under furface as the 

 upper, and both are very fubject. to vary in this refpecl, as well 

 as in fize and form. The flowers of the maximum are paler 

 coloured and grow in a much more compact umbel upon 

 fhorter pedicles ; the corolla is more deeply divided and the 

 fegments are rounder, more concave, and not undulated as in 

 ponticum. The difficulty has of late been increafed by the 

 raifing of hybrid varieties from an intermixture of the two. 

 The upper fegment of the corolla, not the lower as is faid by 

 Willdenow, is rather larger than the reft, and beautifully 

 fpotted towards the bafe with green and yellow. 



Requires a moift foil with an admixture of bog-earth and a 

 fhady fituation. Bears forcing as well as the ponticum, but is 

 not fo well adapted to this purpofe from the palenefs of the 

 flowers, which, in this ftate, become white, except the upper 

 lacinia. Is rather more apt to be disfigured by the cold eafterly 

 winds occurring late in the feafon. 



Our drawing was made in the fpring of 1785, at MeiTrs. 

 Whitley and Bkame's, Old-Brompton, when every fhrub 

 both of this and ponticum produced abundance of flowers in 

 the greatefl perfe&ion. This year not a complete umbel was 

 to be feen in the whole collection ! 



Introduced in 1736, by Peter Collinson, Efq. 



