"hardy" rhododendrons 259 



small, pretty pink flowers. Another (R. laetevirens), 

 known in gardens as R. Wilsonii, is a cross between jR. 

 ferrugineum and R. minus and is a shrub of open, 

 spreading habit and forms low, wide masses. The 

 foliage is light green and handsome but the flowers are 

 small and of an unattractive rose color and the value of 

 the plant is in its ability to cover either sunny or shady 

 banks and for this it is admirably adapted. The 

 third hybrid is R. arbutifolium and is probably also 

 a cross between R. ferrugineum and R. minus. It is 

 not so good a garden plant as R. laetevirens. 



From the cold regions of Mandshuria and Korea 

 came R. dahuricum and R. mucronulatum, which 

 though they belong to dotted-leaved group have 

 deciduous leaves. These grow from four to eight 

 feet high and are sparsely branched. In the 

 first named the flowers are deep rose-purple and 

 pink, and rose-colored in R. mucronulatum. They 

 are the earliest of this class to open their flowers 

 and in consequence these are often spoilt by late 

 frosts in the spring. Other early- flowering Rhodo- 

 dendrons are R. praecox and its variety Early Gem, 

 which are the result of crossing the Himalayan R. 

 ciliatum and R. dahuricum. Both are evergreen 

 bushes, much branched and compact in habit and 

 have pale to deep pink flowers. In favorable seasons 



