BALFOoUR—NEW SPECIES OF RHODODENDRON. 87 
then glabrescent with traces of a juvenile indumentum of ad- 
pressed floccose hairs, at the top bearing a rosette of 4-5 leaves 
which persist in the rosette form for two or three years, annual 
growth short at most about 2 cm., marked throughout the 
branches by the nodulose summit, not clad at the base by per- 
sistent outer scale-leaves of the foliage-bud, older branches 
becoming more or less tawny before decorticating. Foliage- 
buds small narrow fusiform pointed; outer scale-leaves short 
crustaceous with a rounded or oblong base and an apiculus 
or tail, keeled and outside puberulous with white adpressed 
hairs more densely so around the base of the apiculus, margin 
flock-ciliate ; inner scale-leaves membranous yellow ligulate- 
spathulate about 2 cm. long 8 mm. broad shortly apiculate 
and there pubescent, margin flock-ciliate ; young leaves revolute 
sparsely caducously floccose. Leaves petiolate as much as 
6.5 cm. long; lamina leathery obovate as much as 5.5 cm. 
long 3 cm. broad, apex obtuse or rounded tuberculate-mucro- 
nulate, margin cartilaginous slightly recurved, narrowed to 
base and prolonged into the petiole as a short wing; upper 
surface dark green mat slightly rugulose, midrib and primary 
veins (which are some 10 on each side) grooved glabrescent with 
traces of hairs in the midrib groove; under surface tawny grey 
becoming steel-grey, midrib raised tinted red and more or less 
floccose, primary veins also tinted red and raised ascending 
at an acute angle, rest of surface and also some of the primary 
veins covered with a thin compact persistent bistrate indu- 
mentum of an upper layer of shortly stoutly stalked hairs 
branching at end of stalk into many thin-walled spreading 
branches interweaving with those of adjacent hairs and forming 
a smooth scintillating slightly honeycombed surface, shorter 
stalked or sessile rosette-hairs occur below the longer ones, 
eglandular ; petiole about r cm. long reddening glabrescent. 
Flowers in 4-6-flowered terminal umbels ; bracts and bracteoles 
unknown ; pedicels expanded below the flower as much as 
2.5 cm. long often shorter white tomentose with fasciate 
floccose hairs, eglandular. Calyx with a short cup densely 
floccose outside about 1 mm. long 5-lobed; lobes unequal 
yellow membranous floccose outside flock-fringed at margin 
oblong or ovate unequal early deciduous. Corolla openly 
campanulate pure white about 3.7 cm. long; tube glabrous 
iati iseo-tomentosi, eglandulosi. Calycis cupula dense floccoso- 
ngs hapa flavidi extus et margine dense floccosi. 
Corolla aperte 
ceum corolla brevius ibus longius; ovarium ad . longum 
truncatum pilis fasciatis dense tomentosum eglandulosum. Stylus glaber. 
