Rhododendron Cultivars L

'Lady Alice Fitzwilliam'

Flowers very fragrant, in twos or threes. Corolla funnel-shaped, 4 in. wide, white, faintly stained with yellow in the throat and pinkish on the reverse along the ridges. Style scaly in lower half. Calyx-lobes ovate, 1⁄8 to 1⁄4 in. long, fringed with silky hairs. Leaves oblong-elliptic or slightly obovate, acuminate, about 2 1⁄2 in. long, dark green and rugose, pale beneath. When this rhododendron received an F.C.C. in 1881 it was said to be one of the numerous hybrids between R. ciliatum and R. edgeworthii, which appears to be the correct parentage. It is almost hardy on a wall, and that is the best place for it, the habit being very lanky. It flowers in May and makes the most glorious displays even in gardens near London.

Rhododendron 'Lady Alice Fitzwilliam' at Mount Congreve, Waterford, Ireland. 24 April 2012. Image John Anderson.

Handsome foliage visible among the flowers on Rhododendron 'Lady Alice Fitzwilliam' at Mount Congreve, Waterford, Ireland. 24 April 2012. Image John Anderson.

Close-up on an individual flower of Rhododendron 'Lady Alice Fitzwilliam'. Mahee Island, Strangford Lough, Northern Ireland. 15 June 2019. Image John Anderson.

'Lady Annette de Trafford'

‘Lady Annette de Trafford’, from Knap Hill, resembles ‘Lady Eleanor Cathcart’, but the flowers are paler pink and the leaves relatively broader.

Lady Berry ('Rosy Bell' × Royal Flush)

Flowers pendent, about five in the truss. Corolla fleshy, tubular-campanulate, 3 in. long, 2 1⁄2 in. wide, Rose Opal inside, the outside Jasper Red, paling on the lobes. Calyx rim-like. Leaves sea-green, oblanceolate, 4 by 1 1⁄2 in. Medium size. May. (Rothschild. A.M. 1937, F.C.C. 1949.) A beautiful but tender hybrid, showing the influence of R. cinnabarinum very strongly. The F.C.C. clone is described (R.Y.B. 1949, fig. 1). The cross is a surprising one, considering that the parents of ‘Rosy Bell’ are both diploid and give no obvious sign of their presence. Were it not that this hybrid is given as the seed-parent one would have supposed that the cross was made the other way about, and that the pollen of ‘Rosy Bell’ had caused Royal Flush to set seed apomictically. The latter is a hybrid between two highly polyploid species.

Rhododendron Lady Berry at Exbury, Hampshire, UK. 28 April 2014. Image John Anderson.

Close up on a truss of Rhododendron Lady Berry at Exbury, Hampshire, UK. 28 April 2014. Image John Anderson.

Lady Bessborough (campylocarpum "var. elatum" × discolor)

Flowers about 10 in a loose truss. Corolla 7-lobed, funnel-campanulate, 31⁄2 in. wide, pale buff-pink in the bud, opening ivory-white, throat speckled with crimson below the upper lobes and somewhat darker in tone than the limb. Style glandular almost to the tip. Leaves oblong-elliptic, dull green, to 6 in. long. Tall. Late May or early June. (Rothschild. F.C.C. 1933.) One of the best known Exbury hybrids, deriving its colouring from R. campylocarpum and its large size, seven-lobed corolla, foliage and late-flowering from R. discolor. The plant described here is probably of the F.C.C. clone. In ‘Roberte’ the flowers are delicate salmon-pink, fading to yellowish at the centre of each lobe (F.C.C. 1936).

The A. Gilbert grex, raised by T. H. Lowinsky, is of the same parentage as Lady Bessborough, though a different form of R. campylocarpum was probably used. A.M. 1925.

Lady Chamberlain (cinnabarinum var. roylei × Royal Flush, orange form)

The influence of R. cinnabarinum predominates in this group of hybrids, which is the result of a back-cross between it and R. cinnabarinum × R. maddenii, the parentage of Royal Flush. They could almost be regarded as superior forms of R. cinnabarinum, but no doubt derive their larger flowers from the R. maddenii element. In ‘Exbury Lady Chamberlain’ (F.C.C. 1931) the flowers are four or five to the truss, with a ground colour of orange-red, shading to paler on the lobes and tinged with rose on the outside. Other clones have been named, in various shades of orange blended with pink, most of which are available in the trade. The cross was also made at Bodnant (‘Bodnant Yellow’, F.C.C. 1944), but in this case a different form of R. cinnabarinum was used.

The hybrids of the Lady Chamberlain grex flower in May. They are perhaps rather less hardy than R. cinnabarinum and need a sheltered but only slightly shaded position. They are of slender, upright habit, to 8 ft or so.

'Lady Clementine Mitford'

Flowers 16 to 18 in a compact truss. Corolla widely funnel-shaped, 3 in. wide, peach-pink, paling to blush along the centre of each lobe, with a flare of brownish or greenish markings, which become redder at the edge of the flare. Style and stamen-filaments white, anthers pinkish. Ovary glabrous. Leaves mostly narrow-obovate, dark green, to 5 1⁄2 in. long, finely tomentose when young. A large, dense shrub. Early June. (Waterer, Knap Hill.) An old hybrid that still holds it own. It received an Award of Merit (after trial) in 1971, about a century after it was first introduced.

Rhododendron Lady Clementine Mitford at Exbury, Hampshire, UK. 30 May 2008. Image John Anderson.

'Lady de Rothschild'

Flowers about 16 in a large truss; rachis 3 in. long; pedicels up to 2 in. long, glandular. Corolla widely funnel-shaped, 31⁄2 in. across, white, with a flare of blackish crimson. Rather leggy habit. June. (griffithianum × ‘Sappho’; Waterer, Knap Hill. A.M. 1925.)

'Lady Decies'

Flowers up to 20 in a dense truss. Corolla widely spreading, almost flat, nearly 4 in. across, lilac-mauve shading to white in the centre, with a flare of bright yellow. Late May or early June. (Waterer, Bagshot, before 1922.)

'Lady Eleanor Cathcart'

Flowers 12 to 15 in a rounded truss, on purplish-red, glandular pedicels. Corolla funnel-campanulate, about 2 1⁄4 in. wide, light rose with a narrow, dark maroon flare, often likened to that of a pelargonium. Stamens white with yellow anthers. Style glabrous, pale green with a red stigma. Leaves felted when young, oblanceolate, to 4 1⁄2 in. long, 1 3⁄4 in. wide, dull dark green above, rusty beneath. A very large shrub. June. This famous hybrid was put into commerce by John Waterer of Bagshot in 1854 or possibly a year or so earlier, at 21/- a plant – a high price for those days. In 1853 the plant in the nursery was heavily cut to supply graft-wood, but three years later it starred in the Regent’s Park Exhibition, when a plant was shown 12 ft high, which suggests an origin not much later than 1836. At Highclere, hybrids which appear to have been similar to ‘Lady Eleanor Cathcart’ were raised by fertilising R. maximum with the pollen of Altaclerense (which had first flowered there in 1831). Some of the Highclere seedlings were flowering by 1843, the best ‘pale vermilion and splendidly spotted’. But the same cross may well have been made by John Waterer. ‘Lady Annette de Trafford’, from Knap Hill, resembles ‘Lady Eleanor Cathcart’, but the flowers are paler pink and the leaves relatively broader. ‘Lady Longman’ is a hybrid between ‘Lady E. Cathcart’ and ‘Cynthia’, raised at the Sunningdale Nurseries by Harry White, their manager, before 1930. The flowers are bright rosy crimson, much more intensely coloured than in ‘Lady E. Cathcart’, and with a darker flare.

Rhododendron Lady Eleanor Cathcart in the Valley Gardens, Windsor Great Park, UK. 18 April 2017. Image John Anderson.

Rhododendron Lady Eleanor Cathcart in the Valley Gardens, Windsor Great Park, UK. 18 April 2017. Image John Anderson.

'Lady Grey Egerton'

Truss dense with about 20 flowers. Corolla 23⁄4 in. across, funnel-shaped, pale lilac, paling towards the centre, with a ray of light brown speckles situated towards the base of the centre lobe and running into the throat. Stamens and style coloured more or less like the corolla; stigma pale brownish pink. Leaves obovate, rounded at both ends. Mid-June. (Waterer, Knap Hill.) A lovely hybrid, but the colour of the flowers seems to vary slightly with the weather or perhaps with soil conditions. Sometimes it is spoilt by an excessive infusion of pink. It is named after the wife of Sir Philip Grey Egerton, a member of the Council of the R.H.S. around the middle of the last century and a friend of R. S. Holford of Westonbirt.

'Lady Longman'

‘Lady Longman’ is a hybrid between ‘Lady E. Cathcart’ and ‘Cynthia’, raised at the Sunningdale Nurseries by Harry White, their manager, before 1930. The flowers are bright rosy crimson, much more intensely coloured than in ‘Lady E. Cathcart’, and with a darker flare.

'Lady Primrose'

Flowers 10 to 12 in a fairly compact truss. Corolla funnel-shaped, with spreading lobes, about 2 in. wide, greenish yellow in the bud, opening clear sulphur yellow, speckled with red in the throat below the centre lobe. Leaves similar to those of R. campylocarpum. Dense habit, medium size. Late April or early May. (Slocock. A.M. 1933.) Although not highly rated, this is an attractive rhododendron.

Lady Rosebery

The Lady Rosebery cross is the same as that which produced the Lady Chamberlain grex, except that the pink-flowered form of Royal Flush was used. The resulting plants are usually regarded as forming a separate grex. In the typical clone the corollas are 21⁄2 in. long, 13⁄4 in. wide, rather deeply lobed, crimson outside on the tube, pinker on the lobes, pink within. F.C.C. 1932. There are other clones in this sub-grex, differing slightly in colour. All are beautiful.

'Lady Rosebery'

Crimson with an orange flare, about 21⁄4 in. wide; trusses compact, with up to thirty flowers (Knap Hill, raised by Anthony Waterer II, introduced 1944).

Ladybird ('Corona' × discolor)

Flowers in dense trusses. Corolla widely funnel-campanulate, 3 1⁄2 in. across, wavy at the margin, coral-pink with a darker mark in the throat. Leaves dark green and glossy, 7 by 3 in. Tall and vigorous. Late May or early June. (Rothschild. A.M. 1933.)

Rhododendron Ladybird at Exbury, Hampshire, UK. 18 June 2009. Image John Anderson.

'Laetevirens'

Also to be mentioned here is ‘Laetevirens’ (‘Wilsonii’), of unknown origin, which was considered by Rehder to be the result of a cross between R. ferrugineum and R. carolinianum, a species closely related to R. minus. It has longer leaves than any other hybrid of this group, 21⁄2 in. long, 3⁄4 in. wide, and also larger flowers, the pale rose corolla being up to 11⁄4 in. wide. It flowers in late May or early June and makes a dense leafy bush up to 5 or 6 ft high. Rehder named it R. × laetevirens on the grounds that its garden name, R. Wilsonii, had been validly published for a hybrid between R. ciliatum and R. glaucum.

Lamellen (campanulatum × griffithianum)

Flowers about eight in a racemose truss; rachis 4 in. long. Corolla open-campanulate, 31⁄2 in. wide, with broad lobes, lilac in the bud, opening pure white, with slight speckling. Style glabrous with a large green stigma. Ovary slightly glandular. Leaves 61⁄2 by 23⁄4 in., elliptic, veins impressed above, obtuse to subacute at the apex, truncate to cordate at the base. April. An interesting hybrid raised by E. J. P. Magor of Lamellen, uncommon in gardens. The description is from a plant growing at Grayswood Hill, Haslemere.

'Langley Park'

Flowers 10 to 14 in the truss on erect, pale green pedicels. Corolla campanulate, of firm texture, not much spreading at the mouth, 2 in. long and 23⁄4 in. wide, deep glowing red, slightly speckled, nectaries darker red. Stamens with white filaments and red anthers. Style white, stout. Leaves narrow-elliptic, 6 by 13⁄4 in., up-folded along the midrib. Compact, medium size, mid-May. It is interesting that this fine red hybrid is a sister-seedling of ‘Britannia’, both having been raised by C. B. van Nes from ‘Queen Wilhelmina’ crossed with ‘Stanley Davies’.

'Langworth'

Flowers about 16 in a conical truss. Corolla funnel-shaped, 4 in. wide, margins slightly waved, white, streaked with brown in the throat, with green spotting on the upper lobe. Vigorous, spreading habit. Late May. (fortunei × ‘Sappho’; Slocock. A.M.T. 1962.)

'Lapwing'

Creamy yellow suffused with pink and with a deeper yellow flare, fragrant, 2 in. wide. Early (Knap Hill, 1935). A.M.T. May 11, 1953.

'Lascaux'

Flowers about eight (sometimes more numerous) in a flat-topped truss. Corolla tubular-funnel-shaped, 13⁄4 in. long, 21⁄2 in. wide, Barium Yellow, faintly speckled on the upper lobes and with red marks inside at the base. Calyx petaloid, irregular, its lobes up to 1 in. long. Medium size. June. (‘Fabia’ × litiense; R.H.S. Garden, Wisley. A.M. 1954.)

Laura Aberconway (Barclayi × griersonianum)

Flowers about nine in a loose truss. Corolla funnel-shaped, 31⁄2 in. wide, margins slightly frilled, Geranium Lake. Leaves lanceolate, thick and leathery, dark green above, yellowish green beneath. Medium size. May. (Aberconway. F.C.C. 1944.) An uncommon, beautifully coloured rhododendron, uniting the Chinese R. griersonianum with three Himalayan species (R. arboreum, R. griffithianum and R. thomsonii).

'Lava Flow'

Flowers four or five in the truss; outer bud-scales dark red. Corolla rich scarlet, trumpet shaped, 23⁄4 in. wide, speckled, especially on the upper lobes, glandular hairy on the outside. Anthers black. Leaves elliptic, subacute and apiculate, about 3 in. long, dull above, clad beneath with a buff powdery indumentum. Mid- to late June. Bushy habit. An interesting and finely coloured hybrid raised at the Sunningdale nurseries from R. griersonianum crossed with KW 13225. The second parent is an unidentified member of the Neriiflorum series, said to resemble R. sanguineum subsp. didymum except in having brilliant scarlet flowers (Rhododendrons at Sunningdale, p. 31). ‘Glowing Ember’ is of the same parentage and from the same raiser.

'Lavender Girl'

Flowers fragrant, 12 to 18 in the truss, on brownish-red pedicels. Corolla funnel-shaped, seven-lobed, 31⁄4 in. wide, pale pinkish mauve (Roseine Purple) on a chalky white ground, paling to almost white in the centre, with two bands of brownish streaks in the upper half of the throat. Style greenish white. Leaves oblanceolate, 71⁄2 by 27⁄8 in. Vigorous, spreading but dense habit. May. (fortunei × ‘Lady Grey Egerton’; Slocock. F.C.C.T. 1967.) A handsome and very useful rhododendron, associating well with the deciduous azaleas.

'Lee's Dark Purple'

Another very old dark purple rhododendron is ‘Lee’s Dark Purple’, which has royal purple corollas with a flare of greenish brown or ochre speckles. Unlike the previous two hybrids (‘Purpureum Grandiflorum’ and ‘Purpureum Elegans’), this has a well-developed calyx, which suggests that R. maximum enters into its ancestry. It is possible that this is the same as ‘Lee’s Late Purple’, which was used at Highclere as a parent before 1844.

'Lee's Scarlet'

Flowers about ten in the truss on upright, glandular pedicels. Corolla campanulate, frilled, deep crimson-pink with a bright red blotch at the base and speckled in the lower half. Style very stout, with a dark red stigma. Very early flowering, often starting before Christmas. A curious hybrid of unknown origin.

'Leo'

Corolla orange-pink (41b/c), 11⁄2 in. wide, with slight purple spotting on the upper lobes. Upper leaves obovate, rounded and mucronate at the apex. Low spreading habit. Late May or early June. A pleasingly coloured hardy, very free-flowering azalea, raised at Exbury.

'Leonard Messel'

Flowers three to five in the truss, on pedicels up to 1 in. long. Corolla tubular-campanulate, 7⁄8 in. long, 1 in. wide, with ovate lobes, pale yellow, lightly spotted with brown. Calyx about 3⁄16 in. long, deeply lobed, scaly. Leaves 23⁄8 by almost 1 in., oblong-elliptic, bright green and glossy above, dull pale green beneath. A natural hybrid of R. brachyanthum, raised at Nymans from seeds collected by Kingdon Ward in the wild, probably in the Seinghku valley, N.W. Burma. A pretty shrub, taller than R. brachyanthum, flowering in May. A.M. 1966.

'Leonardslee Giles'

Flowers 12 in a large, dome-shaped truss. Corolla funnel-shaped, 43⁄4 in. wide, pink in the bud, opening pink, fading to white, with slight brown speckling on the upper lobes. Anthers greyish brown, filaments white. Style white with a crimson stigma. Leaves elliptic, 9 by 31⁄2 in. Late April or early May. A hybrid between R. griffithianum and ‘Standishii’ raised at Leonardslee. A.M. 1948, when shown by the Misses Godman of South Lodge.

Leonore

Mention may be made here of another late-flowering cross between R. auriculatum and a red-flowered species. This is the Leonore grex, with R. kyawii as the other parent. The cross was made at Exbury and also at Borde Hill and Werrington. There is an example at Kew near the Rhododendron Dell, which was flowering beautifully in July 1974.

Letty Edwards

The cross using R. campylocarpum “var. elatum” and fortunei was also made by Messrs W. C. Slocock and the results, varying in colour, were given the grex-name Letty Edwards, the individual plants being distinguished by numbers. But the clonal name ‘Letty Edwards’ is now attached to the clone which received an F.C.C. after trial at Wisley in 1948. This has flowers in trusses of ten to twelve, corolla widely funnel-shaped, pale primrose shaded deeper on the upper lobe and in the throat, unmarked except for faint greenish-yellow speckling in the throat.

'Lilacinum'

Members of the Mucronatum group. Mauve flowers.

'Lionel's Triumph'

Flowers about 18 in the truss on long, red-tinged pedicels. Corolla campanulate, 4 in. across, clear soft yellow, flushed with pink at the edges and blotched and speckled with crimson in the throat. April. A magnificent hybrid raised by Lionel de Rothschild at Exbury which first flowered in 1954, twelve years after his death, and received an A.M. when exhibited in that year. The parentage is R. lacteum × ‘Naomi’. It is still scarce in commerce. In 1967 the same award was given to the clone ‘Halton’; see R.C.Y.B. 1968, p. 232.

Rhododendron 'Lionel's Triumph' at Exbury, Hampshire, UK. 2 May 2013. Image John Anderson.

Rhododendron 'Lionel's Triumph' at Exbury, Hampshire, UK. 27 April 2010. Image John Anderson.

'Little Ben'

Flowers up to eight in the truss. Corolla tubular-campanulate, 11⁄2 to 2 in. wide, glowing blood-red. Calyx petaloid, variable in size, coloured more or less like the corolla. Leaves ovate to elliptic, rounded at both ends, up to 31⁄2 in. long, half as wide. Dwarf, to about 21⁄2 ft in height, spreading. Late March or April. A very free-flowering hybrid, raised by C. Scrase-Dickins of Coolhurst, Horsham, from R. neriiflorum pollinated by R. forrestii. F.C.C. 1937.

'Little Bert'

C. Scrase-Dickins of Coolhurst, Horsham also raised ‘Little Bert’, with R. forrestii as the seed-parent, the pollen-parent in this case being the form of R. neriiflorum known as R. euchaites. A.M. 1939. Lower-growing than ‘Little Ben’, with darker, relatively narrower leaves, and red bud-scales.

Lodauric (auriculatum × Loderi)

Flowers fragrant, about seven in the truss, on stout, glandular pedicels; rachis almost 2 in. long. Corolla broadly funnel-shaped, 5 in. wide, 6– or 7-lobed, white, with two lines of brownish-crimson markings in the tube. Style red-glandular to the tip, with a large, pale green, discoid stigma. Leaves intermediate between those of the parents. Tall. Late June or early July. (Crosfield, 1939.)

'Lodauric Iceberg'

‘Iceberg’, of the same parentage, was raised by Messrs W. C. Slocock and received an A.M. in 1958. This has more numerous flowers per truss. A merit of this cross is that the flowers do not burn in the sun – a fault that mars the Polar Bear grex.

Rhododendron Lodauric Iceberg at Exbury, Hampshire, UK. 10 June 2014. Image John Anderson.

Rhododendron Lodauric Iceberg at Exbury, Hampshire, UK. 10 June 2014. Image John Anderson.

Loderi (fortunei × griffithianum)

This magnificent hybrid, of which there are many forms, was raised by Sir Edmund Loder, Bt, of Leonardslee, Sussex, at the beginning of this century. The seed-parent was a good form of R. fortunei in his own collection. The pollen came from a particularly fine plant of R. griffithianum in the greenhouse of his neighbour F. D. Godman of South Lodge. He made this cross twice and a high proportion of the offspring had large flowers and leaves, the rest being too near to R. fortunei. He also made the reverse cross, but with less success, since the pollen-parent (R. fortunei) predominated in the offspring, only a few plants showing Loderi-characters (Millais, Rhododendrons (1917), p. 178). The first seedlings flowered in 1907 and several had been named by 1910, when William Watson of Kew visited Leonardslee and saw them in flower. In the following year he gave the botanical name R. Loderi to the results of the cross (Gard. Chron., Vol. 50 (1911), p. 31). Altogether some 100 seedlings were planted out, some of which did not flower until after Sir Edmund’s death in 1920.

The flowers of Loderi are fragrant and borne nine to twelve together in a tall, rather open truss, on a rachis 2 to 31⁄2 in. long. Corolla six- or seven-lobed, up to 6 in. or even slightly more wide, funnel-shaped with a broad tube, varying slightly according to the clone from white to blush or light pink, but always pink in the bud, with or without slight brownish or greenish markings in the throat. Style glandular, with a green knob-like stigma. Calyx well developed, irregularly lobed. Leaves elliptic, 8 to 12 in. long, glabrous, medium green, with a tendency in some clones to become chlorotic between the main lateral veins; petioles usually stained with plum-purple on the upper side. Many clones have been named, of which the following have received awards, but all those in commerce are worthy of cultivation, and really the differences between them are not great.

– ‘Diamond’. – White, with slight markings in the throat. F.C.C. 1914. This and ‘Pink Diamond’ were the first of the group to be exhibited.

– ‘Julie’. – White suffused with sulphur. Raised at Townhill Park from a cross between two forms of Loderi. A.M. 1944.

– ‘King George’. – Blush-tinted at first, becoming pure white, 6 in. wide, unmarked in the throat apart from two faint bands of green. F.C.C. 1970.

– ‘Pink Diamond’. – Light pink, holding its colour well. F.C.C. 1914.

– ‘Princess Marina’. – Flowers of good substance, 12 in the truss, pale pink fading to white. The result of a cross between ‘King George’ and ‘Sir Edmund’, raised at Leonardslee by Sir Giles Loder, Bt. A.M. 1948.

– ‘Sir Edmund’. – Blush, veined with pink when first open, mostly six-lobed. The original plant flowered some years after Sir Edmund Loder’s death in 1920. A.M. 1930.

– ‘Sir Joseph Hooker’. – White with a slight blush tinge and very faint greenish or greyish markings in the throat, about 12 in the truss. A.M. May 21, 1973. Quite as fine as ‘King George’.

– ‘Venus’. – At first deep pink, fading to lighter pink, with faint green markings in the throat. The original plant is at Exbury but was raised at Leonardslee. One of the finest clones, recommended for an Award of Garden Merit.

An article by Sir Giles Loder on the clones of Loderi and its hybrids will be found in the Rhododendron Year Book for 1950, pp. 16–19.

The Loderi group are exceptionally vigorous and free-flowering rhododendrons, needing shelter and slight shade if they are to be seen at their best. In time they will attain a height of about 25 ft. The normal flowering time is about mid-May.

Sir Edmund Loder was not the first to raise hybrids between R. fortunei and R. griffithianum. The cross was made at Kew in 1875, and from the single pod obtained several plants were raised, to which William Watson gave the collective name R. Kewense in 1888. He stated the parentage to be R. griffithianum × R. hookeri, but there seems to be really no doubt that the second parent was R. fortunei. When describing R. Loderi twenty-three years later Watson remarked that Sir Edmund Loder was convinced that this was the case and had made his cross with the purpose of proving that he was right.

The Kew plants all had blush-white flowers except for one, which had pink flowers and was named R. Kewense roseum. In 1907 the nurseryman George Paul showed a form of R. Kewense with blush-tinted flowers, which, according to Millais, he had himself raised, and the cross was apparently made by other nurserymen before Loderi came on the scene. How many clones there are under the name Kewense, and whether or not they descend from the Kew plants, it is impossible to say. A common commercial clone seems to be rather less demanding than the Loderi clones, perhaps because the leaves are smaller. The flowers are white with a slight flush of pink, with two lines of green or brown markings in the throat, mostly five-lobed, and the calyx is larger than in the Loderi clones.

'Loder's White'

Flowers about 12 in a large conical truss. Corolla widely funnel-shaped, 4 in. wide, wavy at the margin, mauvish pink in the bud, opening pure white (but retaining for some time a suggestion of pink when the plant is grown in shade), very lightly speckled. Anthers pale brown; filaments white. Stigma reddish brown. Leaves elliptic to slightly obovate, 7 3⁄4 by 3 in., dark medium green above, light green beneath. A vigorous shrub attaining 10 to 15 ft in height and more in width. Mid- to late May. It is perfectly hardy and can be grown in full sun, as at Kew, where there is a clump on the Broad Walk. But it is happier perhaps in slight shade and the flowers are more delicately coloured when not fully exposed to the sun.

Millais wrote of this hybrid: ‘No one who loves beautiful shrubs can pass a plant of Loder’s White in flower without halting to admire it, for there is a quality about the exquisite flowers, set off so superbly by the dark foliage, that places it quite in the first rank of good things… . Cornish gardeners, who enjoy a galaxy of fine things, and are not superabundant in their praises, consider Loder’s White the best hybrid Rhododendron ever raised, not even excepting Loderi, and no doubt many agree with them.’

Millais’ account of the history of this hybrid is as follows: J. H. Mangles of Valewood, Haslemere (who died in 1884), sent a number of hybrid rhododendron seedlings to his friend F. D. Godman of South Lodge. One proved to be so outstanding when it flowered that he gave scions to his neighbour Sir Edmund Loder of Leonardslee for grafting. Many plants were raised, and some were sent by Sir Edmund to gardens in Cornwall, where the hybrid became known as Loder’s White. Mangles himself is usually supposed to have raised it, but according to Millais the consignment he sent to South Lodge also contained some hybrid seedlings raised by Mr Luscombe of Coombe Royal. It is a hybrid of R. griffithianum, though possibly not of the first generation. The other parent is not known. It was once said to be R. arboreum album, but that is only a guess and a bad one at that. It received an Award of Merit in 1911 when shown by Messrs Reuthe and an Award of Garden Merit twenty years later.

Rhododendron 'Loder's White' at Bowood, Wiltshire, UK. 7 May 2017. Image John Anderson.

'There is a quality about the exquisite flowers, set off so superbly by the dark foliage, that places it quite in the first rank of good things'. So wrote J.G. Millais of Rhododendron 'Loder's White'. Bowood, Wiltshire, UK. 7 May 2017. Image John Anderson.

'Lord Roberts'

Flowers about 20 in a dense truss. Corolla funnel-shaped, 1 3⁄4 to 2 1⁄4 in. wide, dark crimson on a bluish base which shows up as the flowers fade, with a flare of dark spots on the upper lobe. Stamens with conspicuously hairy filaments and bluish anthers. Style reddish with a dark crimson stigma. Medium size, July. It is believed to have been raised by Messrs Fromow of Chiswick, who exhibited it as a new rhododendron in 1900. The older ‘The Warrior’, raised by John Waterer before 1867, is similar but the corollas are spotted on the lower lobes also.

Rhododendron Lord Roberts at Exbury, Hampshire, UK. 4 June 2015. Image John Anderson.

'Lord Swaythling'

Flowers about 12 in the truss. Corolla funnel-shaped, 31⁄2 in. wide, with stout ridges, bright red in the bud, opening pink inside but with the brighter colour of the bud persisting for some time on the reverse, speckled inside in two lines below the central lobe. Style red at the top, with a large green stigma. Vigorous, narrow habit. Late April or early May. This is one of the hybrids of R. griffithianum raised by Schulz at the Porcelain Factory, Berlin, at the end of the last century, and was put into commerce by C. B. van Nes (see further in introductory note). A.M.T. 1954. It is hardy but flowers early and needs a sheltered place.

'Lorna'

From the same raiser and of the same parentage as ‘Rosebud’, is similar. The two parents, both Gable hybrids not commonly available in this country, involve between them five species.

'Louise'

Of the same parentage as ‘Marie’ and said to be somewhat hardier. It has bright red flowers, and received an Award of Merit in 1939.

Luscombei (fortunei × thomsonii)

Flowers up to 12 in a loose truss; rachis variable in length even on the same plant, to about 11⁄2 in. long. Corolla funnel-shaped with a broad tube, 3 to 4 in. wide, usually 6– or 7-lobed, rosy pink, nectaries darker, usually with some lines of speckles in the throat. Calyx well developed, irregularly lobed, usually pale green, but coloured like the corolla in one clone. Leaves up to 61⁄2 in. long, about half as wide, broad-elliptic or obovate, rounded at the apex, usually slightly cordate at the base; petioles usually plum-coloured.

The cross between R. fortunei and R. thomsonii was first made by Thomas Luscombe of Coombe Royal, Kingsbridge, Devon, who was among the first gardeners to flower both these species. Some twelve or fourteen plants from the cross had flowered by 1881, only three of them good, and there were then some hundreds still to flower (H. J. Mangles in Gard. Chron., Vol. 15 (1881), p. 363). The name R. Luscombei was given by William Watson in 1892 to a plant at Kew, almost certainly one of the original seedlings. Luscombe also gave a plant to Veitch’s Coombe Wood Nursery, which was apparently propagated and distributed under the name R. Devoniense. The finest forms of Luscombei are those raised by Sir E. Loder at Leonardslee, of which ‘Pride of Leonardslee’ is a named clone. Another superior form is ‘Luscombei Splendens’, with flowers 4 in. wide, deep rose. The original plant was given by H. J. Mangles to Frederick Godman of South Lodge, Sussex, and is thought to have been raised by Luscombe, though Mangles himself is known to have repeated the cross in his garden at Valewood.

'Luscombei Splendens'

Another superior form is ‘Luscombei Splendens’, with flowers 4 in. wide, deep rose. The original plant was given by H. J. Mangles to Frederick Godman of South Lodge, Sussex, and is thought to have been raised by Luscombe, though Mangles himself is known to have repeated the cross in his garden at Valewood.