词条 | rhododendron |
释义 | rhododendron plant any of a genus of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae), notable for their attractive flowers and handsome foliage. The genus is large and extremely diverse, comprising about 850 species. Rhododendrons are native chiefly in the North Temperate Zone, especially in the moist acid soil of the Himalayas and into Southeast Asia to the mountains of New Guinea. The genus Rhododendron includes the azalea and Labrador tea, which were sometimes considered distinct. Rhododendron, meaning “red tree,” refers to the red flowers and woody growth of some species, but rhododendrons range in habit from evergreen to deciduous and from low-growing ground covers to tall trees. The first species available for garden use, in the mid-1600s, was R. hirsutum, the hairy alpine rose, which may grow as high as 1 metre (3 feet). Others range from matlike dwarf species only 10 cm (4 inches) high (R. prostratum, from Yunnan, China) to trees in excess of 12 metres (R. arboreum, R. barbatum, and R. giganteum, from Asia). Leaves are thick and leathery and are evergreen in all but the azalea species, some of which are deciduous. Flowers may be scented or not and are usually tubular to funnel-shaped and occur in a wide range of colours—white, yellow, pink, scarlet, purple, and blue. ![]() |
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