Description

A much-branched, erect, terrestrial shrub or small tree to 2m. Twigs rounded, glaucous-white with tiny brown scales, becoming glabrescent, 2–4mm in diameter; internodes 3.5–10cm. Leaves 3–6 together in tight pseudowhorls at the upper 1–3 nodes. Blade 40–85 x 18–33mm, elliptic; apex broadly acute to obtuse; margin narrowly revolute; base tapering; initially scaly on both sides, above the scales persisting as very small dark brown points, more persistently and sub-densely scaly beneath. Scales very varied in both size and morphology, the smallest mostly circular, pale brown and flat, the larger ones stellately lobed and dark brown and distinctly raised. Mid-vein narrow and impressed above, grooved proximally for c.10mm, beneath strongly raised almost to the apex; lateral veins 5–8 per side, spreading at c.45°, or somewhat obscure, irregular, anastomosing, slightly depressed above and raised beneath in dried leaves, reticulation indistinct. Petiole 6–10 x 1–2mm, not or hardly grooved above when fresh, densely scaly. Inner bracts spathulate with marginal scales on long stalks otherwise glabrous. Bracteoles to 22 x c.1mm, linear to linear-spathulate, glabrous, irregularly toothed at the apex. Umbels 2–6-flowered, the flowers held semi-erect. Pedicels moderately densely covered with pale brown appressed, sub-stellate scales and minutely patently hairy, 15–17 x c.2mm. Calyx obliquely disc-shaped, very shortly and obtusely 5-lobed, 4–5mm in diameter, with brown scales and minutely hairy. Corolla 45–50 x c.35mm; tube 30–35 x 6–8 x 12–14mm, sub-cylindrical, sulcate at the base, distinctly downwardly curved, laxly but obscurely sub-stellate-scaly outside and sparsely to densely hairy in the proximal ½, shortly hairy inside, the lobes 15 x 12mm, sub-circular, spreading horizontally or sometimes a little reflexed, overlapping to c.½ their length, with a few very small scales near the base outside. Stamens exserted to 10mm, clustered around the style on the upper side of the mouth of the corolla; filaments green, filiform, sub-densely hairy in the proximal ½, laxly hairy almost to the top; anthers c.3.5 x 1.3mm, pale brown, oblong, curved, the base obtuse. Disc densely hairy. Ovary c.7 x 3mm, sub-cylindric-conical, base tapering, apex tapering distally, green but densely covered with silvery, sub-patent hairs and scales; style at first with the stigma just below the anthers in the mouth of the flower, later exserted to c.10mm, hairy and scaly in the proximal 2⁄3, glabrous above; stigma globose, c.3mm in diameter.

Rhododendron milleri Argent

Description

Distribution

Altitude

Habitat

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