XLIII. ERICA^CEIE: BHODODE'NDRON. 



587 



now one of the most common species, and the hardiest, in gardens. Flowers 

 rosy lilac ; June to August. Capsule brown ; ripe in September. 



Varieties. 



tt R. c. 2 Russeirianum Brit. Fl.-Gard. 2d ser. t. 91. Leaves oblong 

 finely tomentose beneath. Corymbs many-flowered. Flowers of a 

 bright rosy red, approaching to crimson. A hybrid raised from the 

 seed of R. catawbiense, impregnated by the pollen of R. arboreum, 

 by Mr. Russell of Battersea. A very splendid variety, but some- 

 what tender. 



n. R. c. 3 tigrinum Hort. A variety with a corolla much resembling that 

 of R. c. Russelh'awwwj, but with obvious spots on the inside. 



It is of more robust growth than either R. ponticum or R. maximum, but, 

 in other respects, seems intermediate between them. There are many hybrids 

 in cultivation between it and the former species, though without names. 



. 6. R. CHRYSA'NTHUM L. The golden-jloivered Rhododendron. 



Identification. Lin. Svst., 405., Suppl., 237. ; Don's Mill., 3. p. 843. 

 St/nonymc. R. officinale Salisb. p. 121. t. 54. 

 Engravings. Salisb. Par. Lond., t. 80. ; andourj^. 1107. 



Spec. Char. y $c. Leaves acutish, attenuated at the base, oblong, glabrous, 

 reticulately veined, and of a rusty colour beneath. Flowers and buds 

 clothed with rusty tomentum. Pedicels hairy. Calyx hardly any. Seg- 

 ments of the corolla rounded. Ovarium tomentose. 

 Branches decumbent, beset with rusty stipule-formed 

 scales. Flowers handsome, large, drooping, revolute, 

 rather irregular, yellow. Stigma 5-lobed. (Don's Mill.) 

 A low evergreen undershrub. Siberia, on the "highest 

 mountains ; and Caucasus and Kamtschatka. Height 

 6 in. to 1ft. Introduced in 1796, but not common 

 in collections, being very difficult to keep. Flowers 

 yellow ; June and July. 1107. R. 



It requires to be grown in rather moist peat, kept firm, in an open 

 airy situation. 



. 7. R. CAUCA'SICUM Pall. The Caucasian Rhododendron. 



Identification. Pall. Fl. Ross., 1. p. 46. t 30. ; Don's Mill., 3. p. 844. 

 Engravings. Bot. Mag., t. J145. ; and our fig. 1108. 



Spec. Char., $c. Leaves ovate-oblong, clothed with 

 rusty tomentum beneath, rugged and green above. 

 Peduncles hairy. Bracteas elongated, tomentose. 

 Ovarium downy. Root creeping. Branches pro- 

 cumbent. Flowers purple or white, disposed in 

 umbellate corymbs. Corollas rotate, with wavy 

 rounded segments. (Don's Mill.) A compact ever- 

 green shrub. Caucasus, on high rocks, near the 

 limits of perpetual snow. Height 1 ft. Introduced 

 in 1803, but rare in collections. Flowers white 

 or purple ; August. 



Varieties. The following hybrids are among the handsomest rhododendrons 

 in cultivation : 



B. R. c. 2 stramineum Hook. Bot. Mag. t. 3422. Corollas straw-co- 

 loured. A plant of this variety in the Glasgow Botanic Garden, in 

 April, 1835. was 2 ft. high, and 3 ft. in diameter, with the extremities 

 of its fine leafy branches terminated with clusters of large, beautiful, 

 straw-coloured flowers. The climate of Scotland seems to suit this, 

 and some of the other species found in the coldest parts of the 

 Russian empire, better than that of the South of England. 



e. R. c. 3 pulcherrwium Lindl. Bot. Reg. t. 1820. f. 2. A hvbrid ob- 



1108. R. caucisicnra. 



