Rhododendron austrinum |
Rhododendron alabamense |
|
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Florida azalea, orange azalea |
Alabama azalea |
|
Habit | Shrubs or trees, to 3(–5) m, usually not rhizomatous. | Shrubs, to 3(–5) m, usually not rhizomatous. |
Stems | bark smooth to vertically furrowed, shredding; twigs conspicuously multicellular stipitate-glandular-hairy, otherwise ± moderately to densely unicellular-hairy. |
bark smooth to vertically furrowed, shredding; twigs scattered, multicellular eglandular-hairy (hairs unbranched), otherwise glabrous or moderately unicellular-hairy. |
Leaves | deciduous; petiole multicellular stipitate-glandular-hairy and unicellular-hairy; blade ovate to obovate, 3–11 × 1.5–4.5 cm, thin, membranous, margins entire, plane, ciliate, eglandular- and stipitate-glandular-hairy, apex acute to obtuse, often mucronate, abaxial surface ± moderately unicellular-hairy, adaxial surface sparsely scattered stipitate-glandular-hairy, otherwise ± moderately unicellular-hairy, rarely glabrescent. |
deciduous; petiole unicellular- and stipitate-glandular-hairy; blade ovate to obovate, 4–7.7(–9.4) × 1.2–2.5(–3.3) cm, thin, membranous, margins entire, plane, ciliate, eglandular-hairy, apex acute to obtuse, often mucronate, abaxial surface glabrous or unicellular-hairy, adaxial surface usually scattered eglandular-hairy, usually also unicellular-hairy. |
Inflorescences | 9–24-flowered; bracts similar to bud scales. |
6–7-flowered; bracts similar to bud scales. |
Pedicels | 5–17 mm, stipitate-glandular-hairy, otherwise ± densely unicellular-hairy. |
4–12 mm, eglandular- and/or stipitate-glandular-hairy, otherwise glabrous or moderately unicellular-hairy. |
Flowers | opening before or with leaves, erect to horizontal, slightly or not fragrant; calyx lobes 0.5–2.5 mm, scattered stipitate-glandular-hairy, otherwise unicellular-hairy, margins long stipitate-glandular-hairy; corolla yellow to orange, with usually red or orange-red tube, with indistinct, darker yellow, orange, or red blotch on upper lobe, funnelform, 25–45 mm, scattered stipitate-glandular-hairy, otherwise ± moderately unicellular-hairy on outer surface, petals connate, lobes 9–20 mm, tube ± gradually expanded into lobes, 15–25 mm (longer than lobes); stamens 5, much exserted, ± unequal, 52–77 mm. |
opening before or with leaves, erect to horizontal, very fragrant; calyx lobes 0.1–3 mm, scattered eglandular-hairy and/or stipitate-glandular-hairy, otherwise sparsely to moderately unicellular-hairy, margins eglandular-hairy; corolla white, sometimes pink-tinged, with contrasting yellow blotch on upper lobe, funnelform, 25–42 mm, scattered stipitate-glandular-hairy (hairs often continuing in lines up lobes), otherwise sparsely to moderately unicellular-hairy on outer surface, petals connate, lobes 9–21 mm, tube usually ± gradually expanded into lobes, 15–31 mm (longer than lobes); stamens 5, much exserted, ± unequal, 37–69 mm. |
Capsules | borne on erect pedicels, 14–26 × 3–5.5 mm, sparsely to densely stipitate-glandular-hairy, otherwise moderately to densely unicellular-hairy. |
borne on erect pedicels, 14–22 × 3–4 mm, sparsely to moderately multicellular eglandular-hairy, otherwise moderately to densely unicellular-hairy. |
Seeds | without distinct tails, flattened portion of testa well developed at each end; testa expanded, dorsiventrally flattened, ± loose. |
without distinct tails; testa expanded, dorsiventrally flattened, ± loose. |
Floral | bud scales densely to moderately unicellular-hairy abaxially, margins unicellular-ciliate, also partly glandular-serrate. |
bud scales glabrous or glabrate abaxially, margins unicellular-ciliate. |
2n | = 26. |
= 26. |
Rhododendron austrinum |
Rhododendron alabamense |
|
Phenology | Flowering spring. | Flowering spring. |
Habitat | Wooded slopes, bluffs or lowlands along streams | Open, dry woodlands, rocky slopes |
Elevation | 0-100 m (0-300 ft) | 0-500 m (0-1600 ft) |
Distribution |
AL; FL; GA; MS
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AL; FL; GA; MS; TN
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Discussion | Rhododendron austrinum is most closely related to R. luteum Sweet of eastern Europe, Turkey, and the Caucasus region and to R. occidentale (K. A. Kron 1993). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Rhododendron alabamense may be most closely related to a clade containing orange-red-flowered species (K. A. Kron 1993). This species has sometimes been confused with R. eastmanii; R. alabamense flowers before or as the leaves expand whereas R. eastmanii flowers after the leaves have expanded. Hybrids with R. canescens are known. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 8, p. 466. | FNA vol. 8, p. 467. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Azalea austrina | Azalea alabamensis |
Name authority | (Small) Rehder: in L. H. Bailey, Stand. Cycl. Hort. 6: 3571. 1917 , | Rehder: in E. H. Wilson and A. J. Rehder, Monogr. Azaleas, 141. 1921 , |
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