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Gaultheria codonantha Airy Shaw

Modern name

Gaultheria codonantha Airy Shaw

A large, bushy, evergreen shrub up to 8 ft high, with long graceful shoots, bristly when young. Leaves alternate, distichous, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, cordate at the base, from 212 to 7 in. long, 1 to 5 in. wide, with two thin marginal veins and two stouter ones running out with the midrib to the point; beautifully net-veined between and covered with short brown hairs beneath; stalk very short. Flowers in very short-stalked axillary clusters; pedicels with two bracteoles at the base. Corolla white, often banded with red when fully open, cup-shaped, 34 in. across, glabrous within; filaments glabrous. Fruits purplish black, 34 in. wide. Bot. Mag., t. 9456.

Native of the Assam Himalaya; found by Kingdon Ward in the Delei Valley in 1928 at 5,000 to 7,000 ft and introduced by him under his number 8024. It flowered at Exbury in November 1933 and was given an Award of Merit when shown at Vincent Square the same month. A very striking and handsome shrub, which is only hardy in the mildest counties. The flowers are unusually large for the genus.


Genus

Gaultheria

Other species in the genus