"hardy" rhododendrons 255 



first to raise forms having double flowers. But 

 R. luteum came from a warm climate and its influence 

 on hybrid offspring has been toward a dislike of low 

 temperatures. In a measure this explains the lack 

 of success experienced by garden lovers of New Eng- 

 land with these Ghent Azaleas. It is probable that 

 if seeds of R. luteum were obtained from its altitu- 

 dinal limits in the Caucasus or from Galicia a hardier 

 type would result. 



Another class of Rhododendrons much cultivated 

 in Belgium is that known as Mollis Azaleas. This 

 has resulted from the intercrossing of R. sinense and 

 R. japonicum with various Ghent Azaleas. The class 

 is a very beautiful one but is not more hardy in New 

 England than the pure Ghents. 



(c) Under the name Tsutsutsi the Japanese in- 

 clude most of the Azaleas known in Japan, and 

 of the three species of this section which it is nec- 

 essary to mention here two grow naturally in the 

 Land of the Rising Sun and the other in Korea. 

 The most important is the scarlet-flowered R. Kaemp- 

 feri which was introduced by Professor Sargent 

 in 1892, and is one of the most valuable shrubs that 

 gardens of eastern North America have received from 

 Japan. It is a deciduous and perfectly hardy shrub 

 with slender stems and twiggy branchlets and grows 



