Rhododendron macrophyllum |
Rhododendron canadense |
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big leaf rhododendron, California rhododendron, California rose bay, coast rhododendron, Pacific rhododendron, western rhododendron |
Canada rosebay, rhodora |
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Habit | Shrubs or trees, to 5 m, sometimes rhizomatous. | Shrubs, to 1 m, rhizomatous. |
Stems | bark smooth to vertically furrowed, shredding; twigs with basally branched, crisped/matted, eglandular hairs, very quickly glabrate. |
bark ± smooth to slightly shredding; twigs sparsely multicellular eglandular- and shorter stipitate-glandular-hairy (hairs unbranched), also unicellular-hairy. |
Leaves | persistent; petiole glabrous; blade elliptic to slightly ovate or obovate, (6–)8.5–14(–20) × 2.5–5.5(–7.5) cm, thick, coriaceous, margins entire, plane to revolute, glabrous, apex acute to obtuse or slightly acuminate, surfaces scattered eglandular-hairy (hairs branched basally, crisped, very quickly deciduous), abaxial surface ± smooth. |
deciduous; petiole multicellular eglandular- and stipitate-glandular-hairy and unicellular-hairy; blade elliptic to oblong or obovate, 1–8.3 × 0.4–3 cm, thin, membranous to chartaceous, margins entire, usually ± revolute, sometimes plane, eglandular- and unicellular-hairy, apex acute to rounded, abaxial surface eglandular- and stipitate-glandular-hairy, also unicellular-hairy, (± glaucous), adaxial surface scattered eglandular- and stipitate-glandular-hairy, also unicellular-hairy. |
Inflorescences | 10–20-flowered; bracts similar to bud scales. |
sometimes fasciculate, 3–9-flowered; bracts similar to bud scales. |
Pedicels | 30–60 mm, glabrous. |
3–10 mm, (usually glaucous), usually sparsely stipitate-glandular-hairy, and sometimes also densely unicellular-hairy. |
Flowers | opening after development of leaves (of flowering shoots), erect to horizontal, fragrant; calyx lobes 1–1.5 mm, glabrous, except margins eglandular- and stipitate-glandular-hairy; corolla white to pink or rose-purple, with yellowish green spots on upper lobe, broadly campanulate, 24–48 mm, outer surface glabrous, petals connate, lobes 14–30 mm, tube gradually expanding into lobes, 10–23 mm; stamens 10, included, ± unequal, 16–37 mm. |
appearing before or, sometimes, with leaves, erect to horizontal, fragrant; calyx lobes 0.4–1.5 mm, often scattered stipitate-glandular-hairy, sometimes also unicellular-hairy, margins glandular- and/or eglandular-ciliate; corolla rose-purple to pink, rarely white, unspotted or red-spotted on upper 3 lobes, irregularly shaped, clearly 2-lipped due to very extensive connation of 3 upper lobes contrasting with 2 elongate, widely divergent lower lobes, 12–22 mm, glabrous or, sometimes, sparsely stipitate-glandular-hairy on outer surface, petals connate, upper lobe 3–8 mm, lateral lobes 12–22 mm (closely connate with upper lobe), lower lobes 12–22 mm, tube absent due to deep division between 2 lower lobes and between lateral and lower lobes; stamens 10, exserted, ± unequal, 9–20 mm. |
Capsules | borne on erect pedicels, 13–25 × 4–7 mm, eglandular-hairy (hairs ferruginous, branched or unbranched) and, often, stipitate-glandular-hairy. |
borne on erect pedicels, 0.7–1.7 × 0.3–0.6 mm, multicellular stipitate-glandular- and eglandular-hairy and densely unicellular-hairy. |
Seeds | without distinct tails, flattened portion of testa well developed at each end; testa expanded, dorsiventrally flattened, loose. |
with flattened tails; testa tightly appressed. |
Floral | bud scales multicellular eglandular-hairy (hairs branched basally), and unicellular-hairy (hairs short to elongate) abaxially, margins eglandular-hairy (hairs branched). |
bud scales unicellular-hairy abaxially, and often stipitate-glandular- and eglandular-hairy, margins unicellular-hairy. |
2n | = 26. |
= 52. |
Rhododendron macrophyllum |
Rhododendron canadense |
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Phenology | Flowering spring–summer. | Flowering spring. |
Habitat | Forest and forest margins, thickets | Moist to dry, coniferous or mixed conifer-deciduous forests, thickets, open rocky areas, lake margins, bogs, swamps |
Elevation | 50-1600 m [160-5200 ft] | 0-1900 m [0-6200 ft] |
Distribution |
CA; OR; WA; BC
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CT; MA; ME; NH; NJ; NY; PA; RI; VT; NB; NF; NS; ON; PE; QC
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Discussion | Rhododendron macrophyllum, R. maximum, and R. catawbiense represent subg. Hymenanthes (Blume) K. Koch in North America; the subgenus is represented by hundreds of species in temperate eastern Asia and is characterized by its branched, eglandular hairs (D. F. Chamberlain 1982). These showy plants are frequently used as ornamentals. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Rhododendron canadense is distinctive and is most closely related to R. vaseyi; together they constitute sect. Rhodora (Linnaeus) G. Don (W. S. Judd and K. A. Kron 1995). Rhododendron canadense is sometimes cultivated for its showy flowers. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 8, p. 462. | FNA vol. 8, p. 464. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | R. californicum | Rhodora canadensis |
Name authority | D. Don ex G. Don: Gen. Hist. 3: 843. 1834 , | (Linnaeus) Torrey: in New York State, Rep. Geol. Surv., 151. 1841 , |
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