Rhododendron vanvuurenii J.J.Sm.

Bull. Jard. Bot. Buit. III, 1920. 1: 399, t.48.

WFO ID: wfo-0000405702

IPNI ID: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:333541-1

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Description

Shrub or small tree to 4m. Twigs 2–5mm in diameter, rounded, at first covered with dense, scurfy, deeply stellate and sub-dendroid, reddish-brown scales, quickly glabrescent; internodes 3–15cm. Leaves mostly spirally arranged, sometimes in loose pseudowhorls. Blade 50–140 x 15–40mm, elliptic to narrowly elliptic or ovate elliptic; apex shortly acuminate, sub-acute; margin entire, slightly or not revolute; base broadly tapering to rounded; densely stellate-scaly on both sides at first, quickly glabrescent above and also below, the fragile, loose scales often only persisting close to the mid-vein or in other protected areas. Scales with the marginal zone deeply and narrowly stellately divided; centre depressed, sub-dendroid. Mid-vein narrowly impressed above, broader and very prominent beneath; lateral veins 6–9 per side, somewhat irregular, spreading at c.45°, straight below, curved-anastomosing before the edge, mostly faintly raised, reticulation obscure. Petiole 5–10 x 1–1.5mm, semi-rounded, densely scaly. Flower buds c.40 x 20mm, narrowly ellipsoid, smooth, green. Bracts to 30 x 6mm, outer bracts ovate, becoming ovate-elliptic to broadly elliptic, innermost ones elliptic-spathulate, all densely shortly appressed-hairy and scaly outside, laxly hairy inside. Bracteoles to 22mm, filiform to linear-spathulate, laxly hairy. Inflorescence a complete umbel of 5–15 flowers. Pedicels 9–25 x c.1mm, densely, or more rarely laxly sub-patently hairy and scaly but the scales fragile tending to persist near the ends, occasionally only laxly to sub-densely scaly and without hairs. Calyx c.5mm in diameter, oblique, shortly obtusely 5-lobed, densely hairy and scaly. Corolla 40–60 x 50–55mm, funnel-shaped, orange to yellow, also occasionally white or pink; tube 25–35 x 6–8 x 13–20mm, obtusely 5-angled, and lobed at the base, laxly, minutely stellate-scaly outside, hairy inside; lobes 20–25 x 15–20mm, broadly obovate. Stamens exserted to c.10–12mm, sub-equal; fila­ments linear and hairy proximally, filiform and glabrous in the distal ½; anthers 3–5mm, oblong, base obtuse. Disc densely hairy on the upper margin only. Ovary 5–9 x 2–2.5mm, sub-cylindrical, densely long-hairy and scaly, tapering distally; style slender, equalling the stamens, densely hairy and scaly proximally, becoming less so distally, glabrous in the ultimate area; stigma thick-rounded. Fruit 55–70 x 6–7mm, sub-fusiform-cylindric, sub-densely hairy and scaly.

Distribution

Indonesia, Sulawesi (C), Mt Masawa, Mt Taburone, Mt Balapioe, Mt Pelali, Mt Rantemario and Mt Lompoh; Lore Lundu (Lake Kalimpaa).

Altitude

Habitat

Terrestrial in light dry forest, grass and fern shrubberies, on rocks or bare slopes, locally common and gregarious.

Nomenclatural History

Notes

References

Argent, G. (2006) Rhododendrons of subgenus Vireya. RHS:London. Page:290