Rhododendron rubiginosum 'Cangshan'

Description with 24 photos. Photo: Finn Bertelsen. Upright growing, evergreen shrub. Hardy. Young shoots crimson, scaly. Petiole reddish, scaly, to 12 mm. Leaf blade elliptical, rarely oblong elliptical, non-aromatic, to 85 x 30 mm. Apex acuminate, with tiny mucro. Leaf base acute to obtuse. Adaxial side dark green, scattered scaly. Scales uniform, 230 – 260 micrs., 1-2 x their diam. apart. Abaxial side brownish green, densely scaly. Scales dissimilar in size, broadly rimmed, flat or slightly convex, 170 – 260 micrs. and with scattered darker and coarser scales up to 350 micrs. On the midrib scattered, large scales up to 640 micrs., visible to the naked eye. Inflorescence a semiglobular, short raceme with (3)-6-8 flowers from a terminal bud. Pedicel densely scaly, 7-10 mm. Calyx with 5 broadly triangular lobes, densely scaly, c. 1.5 mm. Corolla with 5 lobes, openly funnel-shaped, slightly scaly, slightly puberulent in the throat, light whitish purple, spotted crimson, c. 30 mm wide, c. 20 mm deep (long). Ovary conical, densely scaly, with 5 loculi, 3.5 mm. Stamens 10, unequal in length (12-20 mm), extending from corolla mouth. Filaments pubescent/glandular hairy towards the base. Anthers purple. Style glabrous, longer than stamens (>20 mm), with bullate, purple-brown stigma, 1.7 mm. Capsule conical, scaly, to 13 mm. Seeds with well-developed floating appendages, without wings, 1.0-1.2 mm.. Locality of origin: Cangshan, Dali County, Yunnan, China. Native habitat: Sichuan, Yunnan, Xizang, (Myanmar) at (2500)-2800-3500-(4200) m according to Flora of China.