Rhododendrons 2014

[johnw]

Rhododendron cinnabarinum didn't survive our winter here in 2012-13. After looking into it a bit more, I discovered an unusual feature of the plant- it produces toxic nectar- it is apparently fine for insects, but honey made from it contains grayanotoxin- not good for humans.

Gordon  - The rhodo expert David Leach once told me he was sittting on a bench under a cinnabarinum at one of the Scottish gardens taking notes.  Some nectar dropped on his head and into his mouth &/or eye and he got terribly ill, his sight was impaired for hours.  I think the culprit was cinnabarinum or augustinii, memory fails.

R. cinnabarinum is worth another try.  The named forms do not do well but if you grow seed of two cinns crossed together you may have better luck.  I have an orange one that has never missed a beat, my purple one here in Halifax for to 6-8ft but drought and inattention got it one summer.

In the near future our chapter may have 'What A Dane' for sale, it is a hardier cinn hybrid from the mighty sorcerer Jens Birck.

[Maggi Young]

Rhododendron dendricola flowering in research block at RBGE
 Francis Kingdon-Ward collection from 1939   info via Alan Elliott and the RBGE
https://twitter.com/thebotanics

   

 and from the alpine house :
   

[Robert]

Maggi,

R. dendricola - gorgeous!

Thank you so much for sharing the photographs.

I have a few seed lines coming along of this species and can see that I have something good to look forward to.

[Robert]

Winter has finally returned with some rain, cooler temperatures, and our normal frosty nights. The Rhododendron duaricum are getting frosted most nights so there is not much in the way of flowers this season.

The R. spinuliferum seedlings pictured below have had nice reddish foliage all winter. Stress and sunshine contribute to the color. I'll take beauty where ever I can find it.

[Robert]

The seasons are changing and some of the rhododendrons are starting to break dormancy.

Rhododendron mucronulatum 'Cornell Pink' is easy-to-grow in our area.

The second photograph is a somewhat compact form of R. mucronulatum selected by Warren Berg. The flowers are a deeper color than the photograph indicates. Great scarlet red fall foliage in the autumn too!

The last two photographs are R. 'Purpur Latte' a hybrid of duaricum x the Warren Berg mucronulatum selection above. Good, deep colored flowers and long lasting fall foliage; first chocolate then scarlet-red. A compact grower. A very simple hybrid that gives us good results.

[Thorkild Godsk]

Rhododendron
Hello Robert.
It's beautiful pictures of Rhododendron, it is to get in the spring mood. When you have very hot, I'm a little curious to know if you have Lilium and Trillium? If you have any what? As these also have my interest.
Sorry my English, I hope it is ok for yuo that I use Google Translate.
Kindly
Thorkild-DK

[Robert]

Thorkild,

Thank you for the compliment. I do the best I can with photographs - my equipment is very old, so I do the best I can.

Right now the only trillium I grow is T. rivale. Trilliums, in general, grow well here and I hope to grow more in the future.

I've been growing and breeding lilies for many years and will have many photographs to share when the season arrives. I guess I could share some now as there are many already on the computer. I enjoy our native lilies. There are a number that grow near our farm.

I also grow things like Lilium mackiniae and various Nomocharis. They do not like the heat - yours look so much better.

Erythronium is another big one for us. Most do well and some are native locally.

Don't worry about your English. I was born in the USA and my English is terrible. 

[Thorkild Godsk]

Rhododendron traillianum.
It has a little story. JC Birck was here once with plants to me, he should travel to China on Rhododendron expedition. From one of his trips to China, he sent a bag Rd traillianum seeds, it is approx. 25 years ago. Here's Rhododendron traillianum from Birck. 
Thorkild-DK

[Maggi Young]

Rhododendron traillianum.
It has a little story. JC Birck was here once with plants to me, he should travel to China on Rhododendron expedition. From one of his trips to China, he sent a bag Rd traillianum seeds, it is approx. 25 years ago. Here's Rhododendron traillianum from Birck. 
Thorkild-DK

  A fine plant  - a silver ghost!

[johnw]

Oh my those are fine traillianum leaves Thorkild.

johnw

[Robert]

Rhododendron
Hello Robert.
When you have very hot, I'm a little curious to know if you have Lilium and Trillium? If you have any what? As these also have my interest.
Kindly
Thorkild-DK

Thorkild,

I'm very interested in the lilies you grow! Maybe a new post under "Bulbs General"? There are many other lily species in our garden other than our west coast species.

Locally we have Trillium angustipetalum and T. albidum. They are not common in our area but I do see them. I've never grown Trillium albidum, however T. angustipetalum has done well for us. Now it is no longer in the garden and hopefully I can find seed again.

A minimum of 500,000 acres of farmland will be out of production this season in California. Our farm is part of the 500,000. I may need to travel out of town to find work this season. If you do not here from me, know that I am very interested in your lilies and rhododendrons.

[François Lambert]

quote author=Maggi Young link=topic=11107.msg292412#msg292412 date=1390915006
I believe that many rhodos - perhaps all - have this "toxic" nectar, Robert.

I have always been told that the nectar is not toxic only to bumblebees, and normally the 'real' bee does not visit Rhododendron flowers.  Which is in line with my observations since childhood (we had wonderful big Rhodo's in the garden of the first house where I lived and I have 2 nice ones in my garden now).  But apparently bees do make exceptions sometimes.

Similarly the nectar or pollen from Nerium Oleander is also said to be toxic to any animal except bumblebees.  In fact the whole plant is said to be extremely toxic.  There is a story of soldiers of Napoleon that had used branches of Nerium Oleander to make skewers and they died of this last meal.

[johnw]

Similarly the nectar or pollen from Nerium Oleander is also said to be toxic to any animal except bumblebees.  In fact the whole plant is said to be extremely toxic.  There is a story of soldiers of Napoleon that had used branches of Nerium Oleander to make skewers and they died of this last meal.

Francosi - The same thing happened to a group of teenagers in California cooking hotdogs at a beach party, maybe as long ago as the 70's.

Snowdrops are said to cause a nasty type of madness in collectors of same.

johnw

[Robert]

The rhododendron blooming season has started in the Sacramento Valley of California. All the photographs are of Rhododendrons grown at our Sacramento Valley home. Very hot and dry during the summer. 38-40 C during the summer is common.

The R. mucronulatum is from the Rhododendron Species Foundation and the last of the mucronulatum types this season.

The R. pubescens is "tough as nails". The take our hot summers with once a week watering. Never burns! Always blooms nicely and looks good.

R. scabrifolium var. spiciferum is another tough Rhododendron. The original plant has survived at our farm for over 35 years - several droughts in its life time. It still looks great. Up the hill the blooming season starts about 3-4 weeks later - most of the time.

[johnw]

Robert - Lovely rhodos there. The semi-double mucronulatum is a good solid colour reminiscent of 'Mahogony Red' or at least what it's supposed to look like.

Good to see spiciferum.  We grow two Glendoick hybrids of it with kieskei  - Waxbill & Wheatear, they told us the would be very tender but they soldier on and are very early flowering.

johnw