Rhododendron pachysanthum

Description with 22 photos. Photo: Finn Bertelsen. A compact, round, evergreen shrub. Hardy. Young shoots whitish tomentose, later brownish. Petiole tomentose, grey green above, cinnamon brown, to 30 mm. Leaf blade ovate to lancet, coriaceous, to 10 cm. Leaf apex acute, with mucro. Leaf base rounded to obtuse. Leaf adaxial side silver coloured tomentose when young, later brownish and decaying and finally dark green and glabrous. Leaf abaxial side light to dark cinnamon brown / rusty brown with a bistrate indumentum. Upper layer woolly, made up of ramiform hairs, lower layer compact, white. Flower bud ovate, with appressed dense, fine hairs on scales. Inflorescence an umbel like raceme, with 8-10 flowers. Pedicel and calyx pubescent and with scattered glandular hairs. Calyx small, c. 1mm. Corolla with 5 lobes, campanulate, white tinged pink. Ovary hairy, glandular hairy. Stamens 10, unequal in length, pubescent at base. Style hairy, glandular hairy near base, the remainder glabrous. Capsule densely short-stipitate glandular. Seeds with small floating appendages and wings. Native habitat: Taiwan at 3000 – 3200 m.