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International Dendrology Society

Rhododendron minus Michx.

Modern name

Rhododendron minus Michx.

Synonyms

R. punctatum Andrews; R. cuthbertii Small; R. carolinianum Rehd.

An evergreen bush up to 20 ft high in the wild, sometimes taller; young shoots rough with scales. Leaves oval-lanceolate to narrowly obovate, tapering at both ends, the apex usually acuminate, 11⁄2 to 3 in. long, 1⁄2 to 11⁄2 in. wide, dark green and nearly glabrous above, thickly dotted beneath with minute red-brown scales; stalk 1⁄4 to 1⁄2 in. long. Flowers in dense terminal trusses, opening in June; pedicels up to 3⁄4 in. long. Calyx-lobes very short. Corolla 1 to 11⁄2 in. wide, funnel-shaped, pale pinkish purple, spotted on the upper side with brownish-red, densely scaly on the outside. Stamens ten, hairy at the base. Ovary scaly; style glabrous. Bot. Mag., t. 2285. (s. Carolinianum)

Native of the south-eastern USA from South Carolina to Georgia and Alabama; introduced in 1786. As seen in this country it is inferior to its ally R. carolinianum, from which it differs in its more pointed leaves, in the corollas being densely scaly on the outside, and in their longer tubes, 2⁄3 in. or more long. It also flowers later, usually in June.

For the hybrids of R. minus, see p. 834.

From the Supplement (Vol. V)

R. carolianinum was separated from R. minus by Rehder in 1912; for the distinguishing characters he gave, see under R. carolinianum (page 623). But according to Duncan & Pullen, in an overlooked paper published in Brittonia, Vol. 14, p. 297 (1962), these differences do not hold good when a wide range of specimens is examined.

The merger means that R. minus becomes a very variable species horticulturally, but this is true also of the plants that have hitherto been grown under one or the other name, so there might be difficulty in defining a Carolinianum group.

var. chapmanii (A. Gray) Duncan & Pullen R. chapmanii A. Gray – See under R. carolinianum, page 624. Another difference is that the wild plants have erect, rigid branches.

Genus

Rhododendron

Other species in the genus

Modern name

Some names used by Bean have now been superseded and are no longer familiar. To ensure that all plants can be easily found, under any name, we have cross-referenced to The Plant List, a collaboration between RBG Kew, Missouri Botanical Gardens and other organisations, which aims to provide a currently accepted name for any plant. Not all taxonomists will agree with all Plant List nomenclature, but it provides a baseline to compare names. For each species above, clicking on the Modern Name will link to the entry for that name on The Plant List website.

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