BALFOUR—NEW SPECIES OF RHODODENDRON. 123 
ingly lepidote outside from base upwards with yellow scintillat- 
ing fleshy scales with a discoid summit, somewhat silky at 
top outside and inside and with a hair-crest, most minutely and 
shortly ciliate. Leaves in fives or sixes at the end of the twigs 
petiolate as much as 16.5 cm. long; lamina thin papery 
lanceolate or slightly oblanceolate sometimes laterally curved 
narrowed to both ends, apex shortly acuminate ending in a 
small inconspicuous hydathode, margin entire finely carti- 
laginous, base more or less wedge-shaped or obtuse often 
unequal ; upper surface pale light green smooth slightly glossy 
with wax coating, in adult state glabrous but for a few hairs 
in the grooved midrib, primary veins about 16 on each side 
inconspicuous ; under surface grey-green sprinkled with far 
distant small yellowish scintillating peltate scales each with a 
narrow umbo and broad sharply circular thick fringe the stalk 
sunk in surface pit, the intermediate areas clad with large wax- 
covered papillae which make a somewhat glistening surface 
and give the grey look to the surface, midrib and primary veins 
prominent straw-coloured the former obscurely puberulous ; 
petiole grooved about 1.5 cm. long furfuraceous on up 
surface glabrous underneath with an occasional peltate scale. 
Inflorescence an erect projecting small raceme of some I0-12 
spreading somewhat drooping flowers, rhachis about 2.5 cm. 
long glabrous purple somewhat glaucous with wax; fertile 
bracts obovate leathery spathulate about 1.5 cm. long 8 mm. 
broad somewhat truncate mucronate densely lepidote and 
puberulous on back finely ciliate hair-crested ; bracteoles linear 
strap-shaped a little wider at top about 1.5 cm. long, sparingly 
pilose throughout and sparingly lepidote outside in upper half 
hair-crested ; pedicels about 2.5 cm. long more or less plum- 
coloured and with a glaucous bloom especially towards top 
where expanded under the calyx, glabrous but for a few 
scattered yellowish or whitish circular scales. Calyx a shallow 
fleshy cup about 3 mm. long plum-coloured with a glaucous 
bloom. glabrous, margin thinner slightly reddened entire or 
obscurely undulate or unequally lobed somewhat spreading. 
Corolla campanulate fleshy plum-purple coloured about 1.7 cm, 
long with a glaucous bloom glabrous inside and outside ; tube 
about 5 mm. wide at base and there paler-coloured ; limb 5-lobed 
the lobes oval rounded at tip undulate 9 mm. long 7 mm. 
broad recurving at expansion. Stamens 8 alternately long and 
short, the short only slightly shorter, about equalling the corolla 
in length ; filaments stout fleshy purple-red or bright crimson, 
not dilated downwards, glabrous ; anthers purplish-red or bright 
crimson oblong large about 2 mm. long. Disk glabrous deep 
purple. Gynaeceum shorter than stamens ; ovary dome-shaped 
