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Rhododendron benhallii Craven

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Peter Norris, enabling the use of The Rhododendron Handbook 1998

Credits

Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles

Recommended citation
'Rhododendron benhallii' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/rhododendron/rhododendron-benhallii/). Accessed 2025-05-21.

Family

  • Ericaceae

Genus

Synonyms

  • Andromeda ciliicalyx Miq.
  • Menziesia ciliicalyx (Miq.) Maxim.

Infraspecifics

Other taxa in genus

Glossary

calyx
(pl. calyces) Outer whorl of the perianth. Composed of several sepals.
corolla
The inner whorl of the perianth. Composed of free or united petals often showy.
apex
(pl. apices) Tip. apical At the apex.
corolla
The inner whorl of the perianth. Composed of free or united petals often showy.
glabrous
Lacking hairs smooth. glabrescent Becoming hairless.
glandular
Bearing glands.
midrib
midveinCentral and principal vein in a leaf.
umbel
Inflorescence in which pedicels all arise from same point on peduncle. May be flat-topped (as in e.g. Umbelliferae) to spherical (as in e.g. Araliaceae). umbellate In form of umbel.

References

There are no active references in this article.

Credits

Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles

Recommended citation
'Rhododendron benhallii' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/rhododendron/rhododendron-benhallii/). Accessed 2025-05-21.

Rhododendron benhallii

Rhododendron benhallii syn. Menziesia ciliicalyx at the Savill Garden, Windsor Great Park, UK (a plant labelled "Dwarf Form", which may be the same as 'Buchanan's Dwarf' mentioned in the text). 5 May 2017. Image John Anderson.

Editorial Note

Formerly included in the small genus Menziesia, and treated under that name by Bean. Except for the subspheroidal capsule shape (in Rhododendron capsules are longer than wide) there was little morphologically to separate Menziesia from Rhododendron, and molecular analysis showed the genus to be nested within Rhododendron (Craven 2011).

Bean noted that the ‘menziesias’ succeed under the same treatment as rhododendrons but enjoy more sunshine; a moist, well-drained, lime-free, loamy or peaty soil suits them. The Japanese species grow slowly and are quite suitable for the large rock garden.’

A deciduous shrub 2 to 3 ft high, with glabrous, slender young shoots, often produced in tiers. Leaves mostly clustered at the end of the twigs, obovate to oval, tapered towards both ends, usually more abruptly towards the apex, edged with bristle-like hairs and having a few larger bristles on the midrib, otherwise glabrous, 3⁄4 to 3 in. long, 1⁄2 to 11⁄4 in. wide; stalk 1⁄8 in. or less long. Flowers nodding, produced in May in umbel-like clusters at the end of the shoots of the previous year. Corolla between bell-shaped and urn-shaped, 5⁄8 in. long, 1⁄4 in. wide, with four or five small lobes, yellowish green at the base, purplish at and near the lobes; glabrous outside, downy within. Stamens eight or ten, shorter than the corolla, very downy at the lower part. Calyx slightly lobed, fringed with glandular bristles. Flower-stalk 1⁄2 to 11⁄8 in. long, glandular-bristly.

Native of Japan, named by Maximowicz in 1870; introduced about 1914. It is quite a pretty shrub but the var. purpurea (see below) is to be preferred.

Rhododendron benhallii

The corollas of Rhododendron benhallii can vary somewhat in colour (Ray Wood, Castle Howard, North Yorkshire, UK). Image John Grimshaw.

Rhododendron benhallii

A richer pink Rhododendron benhallii (Ray Wood, Castle Howard, North Yorkshire, UK). Image John Grimshaw.

Rhododendron benhallii

Rhododendron benhallii syn. Menziesia ciliicalyx at the Savill Garden, Windsor Great Park, UK (a plant labelled "Dwarf Form", which may be the same as 'Buchanan's Dwarf' mentioned in the text). 11 May 2018. Image John Anderson.

Rhododendron benhallii

The former epithet ciliicalyx for Rhododendron benhallii is well illustrated here (Ray Wood, Castle Howard, North Yorkshire, UK). Image John Grimshaw.

Rhododendron benhallii

The flowers of Rhododendron benhallii quite quickly become overshadowed by the expanding foliage (Ray Wood, Castle Howard, North Yorkshire, UK). Image John Grimshaw.

'Buchanan's Dwarf'

Slow growing and of dwarf, spreading habit. It was distributed by Jack Drake’s nursery and received an Award of Merit in 1983 when exhibited by Barry Starling (Bull. Alp. Gard. Soc., Vol. 51, p. 316 (1983)).

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