Kindly sponsored by
Peter Norris, enabling the use of The Rhododendron Handbook 1998
New article for Trees and Shrubs Online.
Recommended citation
'Rhododendron piercei' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.
Straggling shrub, 1.5–2.5 m. Leaves 6–11 × 2.7–5.2 cm, ovate to elliptic, upper surface rugulose; lower surface with a two-layered indumentum, the upper layer a thick fulvous tomentum composed of dendroid hairs, the lower layer white and adpressed; petioles tomentose. Flowers 6–8, in a tight truss; calyx 3–6 mm, irregular; corolla fleshy, crimson with darker nectar pouches, tubular-campanulate, 28–35 mm; ovary densely tomentose, abruptly contracted into the glabrous style. Flowering March-May. Royal Horticultural Society (1997)
Distribution China S Tibet
RHS Hardiness Rating H5
Conservation status Vulnerable (VU)
This species is closely allied to R. beanianum, with which it shares the rugulose upper surface of the leaves. It does however differ in the form of the leaf indumentum that is thicker and lighter in colour. Royal Horticultural Society (1997)