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NOTES ON INDlGENors TREES AND SHRUBS. 



RHODODENDRON CALKNDLLACELM. 



(TORBEY.) 



Leaves oblong-lanceolate, pubescent or 

 hirsute on both sides ; flowers large, not 

 viscid; segments of calyx oblong; tube of 

 the corolla shorter than the segments. 

 Shrub about six feet high, much branched ; 

 flowers vary from a bright flame colour to a 

 deep yellow ; and many varieties of it have 

 been indicated, some of which are hybrids, 

 between this and other species, arising from 

 cultivation. It is extensively cultivated in 

 England. It is common among and on the 

 Allegany mountains, from Pennsylvania to 

 Georgia. Its bright flowers give the moun- 

 tains a beautiful appearance during the 

 months of May and June. It flowers in 

 May in Georgia, and in June in Virginia. 

 Pursh says, " it is, without exception, the 

 handsomest shrub in North America." 



RHODODENDRON NITIDA. Shining Honeysuckle. 

 ToRR. Fl. 1 p., 425. 



Branches smooth, leaves small, oblanceo- 

 late, slightly mucronate, coriaceous, both 

 sides smooth, above shining ; nerve beneath 

 setaceous, margin revolute, ciliate ; corymb 

 leafy ; calyx segments short ; tube of co- 

 rolla glandular, pilose, longer than the 

 lobes ; filaments much exserted. Azalea 

 nitida. (Pursh 1, p. 153.) Shrub 4 to 6 

 feet high. Flowers fragrant, white, tinged 

 ■with red. Those newly formed parts of the 

 stem near the leaves and flowers, are glan- 

 dular hispid. Flowers in July. We col- 

 lected specimens of this shrub, in woods 

 and boggy places, near Flat Rock in Hen- 

 derson county, North Carolina. It is culti- 

 vated in England, where it was introduced 

 from this country, 1812. 



Pursh describes several other species, 

 viz : Azalea arhorescens, now^ R. arlorescens 

 of Torrey and others. This species is said 

 by Pursh to grow on the blue mountains of 



Pennsylvania. It grows to the height of 16 

 or 20 feet on rivulets. We believe it has 

 not been introduced into England, nor found 

 in its native place by any subsequent bota- 

 nist. The following is from Pursh's Flora : 

 " This beautiful species has to my knowl- 

 edge, not yet been introduced into gardens. 

 I have only seen it in its native place, and in 

 the garden of Mr. John Bartram, near 

 Philadelphia, whose father introduced it 

 many years ago. It rises from ten to twenty 

 feet high, and forms with its elegant foli- 

 age, and large abundant rose-colored flow- 

 ers, the finest ornamental shrub I know. 

 The flowers are not so much pubescent as 

 the rest of the species ; the scales of the 

 flower-buds are larger, yellowish brown, 

 surrounded with fringed white border." 



The following species are also enumera- 

 ted by authors, as growing within the Uni- 

 ted States, viz ; jK. glauca, which is proba- 

 bly a variety of viscosa ; Ji. canescens, 

 which " grows on the banks of rivers in low- 

 er Carolina," and will perhaps prove to be 

 a mere variety. Ji. mcdiflora, R. bicolor, 

 said to grow in sterile, sandy hills, in Vir- 

 ginia and Carolina, and R. hispidum, which 

 Torrey says, is scarcely distinct from R. vis- 

 cosum. 



The Rhodora, which is cultivated in some 

 gardens, and is found growing native in 

 Vermont, near Brattleboro and Guildhall, 

 is now referred to Rhododendron, and called 

 Ji. rhodora. We believe the foregoing, in- 

 clude all the Rhododendrons which have 

 been found growing native in the United 

 States, whose splendid flowers render the 

 mountain scenery of the southern Allega- 

 nies so delightful during the early part of 

 summer. 'Tis true the travelling botanist 

 and hunter, will there often find their course 

 impeded, or stopped, by the almost impene- 

 trable thickets of Rhododendron (Laurel.) 



