Description

Shrub or tree to 6m. Twigs 5–7mm in diameter, rounded, tips laxly stellate-scaly; internodes 9–16cm. Leaves 5–7 together in tight pseudowhorls. Blade 65–140 x 40–90mm, elliptic or obovate-elliptic; apex rounded or obtuse; margin entire, flat; base slightly but distinctly cordate, glabrescent above at maturity, laxly scaly beneath. Scales stellate, the thin marginal zone quickly disappearing; centre small, slightly impressed, finally minutely impressed-spotted beneath. Mid-vein broad proximally, gradually narrowed upwards, impressed for the whole length above, thick and obtusely prominent beneath, 2–3mm wide at the base; lateral veins c.8 per side, irregular, spreading, divided and anastomosing before the margin, impressed above, prominent beneath, veins and veinlets forming an impressed lax reticulation above, which is weakly raised or obscure beneath. Petiole 2–6 x 2–3mm, flattened, glabrous. Outer bracts to 20 x 10mm, ovate, inner ones oblong-spathulate, obtuse, outside densely, coarsely hairy, inside more laxly hairy. Bracteoles c.20 x 2mm, linear-spathulate, densely short-hairy at the outside middle line. Inflorescence an 8–20-flowered open umbel, flowers horizontal to half-hanging. Pedicels c.20 x 1mm, densely scaly and very shortly hairy. Calyx c.4mm in diameter, disc-shaped, slightly oblique, sub-glabrous outside, shortly sub-acutely 5-lobed, or occasionally with irregular 2–9 x c.1mm long teeth, which are glabrous or very shortly hairy. Corolla 80–90 x 40–50mm, white, long-tubular below, expanded upwards, initially laxly scaly outside, the scales fragile and falling quickly, laxly hairy inside the tube, white or cream, suffused with pink distally or dark pink, scented; tube 55–70 x 4–5 x 7–9mm, straight; lobes c.20mm, obovate-spathulate. Stamens slightly longer than the corolla tube, unequal; filaments linear, in the lower ¾, sub-densely to more laxly hairy, distally glabrous; anthers 4.5–5 x 1–1.2mm, elongate-oblong, base obtuse, a little curved. Disc prominent, glabrous. Ovary c.8 x 2–2.5mm, elongate-cylindrical, gradually tapering distally, densely yellowish-hairy, laxly scaly although the scales are usually obscured by the hairs; style nearly as long as the corolla tube, for the proximal 10mm, sub-densely to laxly hairy and scaly (the scales clearly visible among the hairs), glabrous distally; stigma conical-globose. Fruit 50–80 x 7–8mm, elongate-fusiform, densely hairy and scaly.

Distribution

Papua New Guinea, Western, Eastern and Southern Highlands; Mts Hagen, Kerigomna, Wilhelm, Otto, Wamtakin, Giluwe and Kubor.

Altitude

Habitat

Terrestrial on margins of mossy forest-grassland, on ridge shrubberies and river banks, locally common.

Nomenclatural History

Notes

References

Argent, G. (2006) Rhododendrons of subgenus Vireya. RHS:London. Page:184