100 MY SHRUBS 
lettti. The parent—a mighty grower—has loose trusses of pure 
white trumpet-like blooms, and from its young foliage falls a tatter 
of crimson bracts as the leaves open in late April. R. decorum is 
the Chinese R. Griffithianum and has fragrant flowers of purest 
white ; but it is not such a great grower. From that famous raiser, 
Gill of Tremough, I have ‘‘ Triumph ” and “ Glory of Penjerrick”’— 
magnificent hybrids, with enormous, bright, crimson trusses—while 
of other species that are reasonably hardy with a little care against 
high winds, I own R. Falconeri, whose mighty leaves have a felt 
of dormouse-coloured tomentum beneath them and R. eximium, 
which displays still more of this rich felt and foliage only less 
splendid than its kinsman. Both are from the Sikkim. R. grande 
(Syn. argenteum) has a dazzling silver underdown and an exquisite 
habit ; but it is a tardy flowerer. R. Dalhousie lives out of doors 
in summer and makes up bud there, then comes indoors and flowers 
during spring before again emerging. It is a straggling, epiphytic 
shrub, from the Sikkim, where it climbs into oaks and magnolias ; 
but its lovely, loose trusses of lemon-coloured blossom make it a 
great favourite with me. The blossoms are as big as an average 
lily, and are much more like Lilium sulphureum than its own family. 
R. Smirnoviu, from Transcaucasia, is a neat rhododendron 
with purple flowers, and R. triflorum has small pale yellow blossoms 
in threes and fours. It comes from 8000 feet levels of the Hima- 
laya, and might perhaps have been left there without loss. It is, 
however, a kindly flowerer, and would make a good cross with 
something of more importance. Then I have hybrids of R. 
arboreum—generous flowerers at six feet high and good for pretty 
trusses of pink and scarlet bloom. R. barbatum, again from Sikkim, 
has splendid blood-coloured blossoms. R. Nuttallit, from Bhotan, 
