''Rhododendron'' subg. ''Hymenanthes'' is a subgenus of the genus ''

Rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...

'', with a widespread distribution in the temperate

Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the Equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined as being in the same celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the solar system as Earth's Nort ...

. The species are

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

s and small to medium-sized

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

s (up to 20 m tall), with medium-sized to large leaves (very large, over 40 cm long, in a few species). The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are large, produced in terminal trusses of 5-40 together. The subgenus includes two sections, ''Rhododendron'' sect. ''Ponticum'', divided into 24 subsections and about 140 species, and (since 2005) ''Rhododendron'' sect. ''Pentanthera'' Section ''Ponticum'' (24 subsections) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Arborea'' (3 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Argyrophylla'' (6 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Auriculata'' (one species, ''R. auriculatum'') * ''R.'' subsect. ''Barbata'' (2 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Campanulata'' (2 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Campylocarpa'' (4 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Falconera'' (7 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Fortunea'' (10 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Fulgensia'' (2 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Fulva'' (2 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Glischra'' (5 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Grandia'' (9 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Griersoniana'' (one species, ''R. griersonianum'') * ''R.'' subsect. ''Irrorata'' (7 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Lanata'' (one species, '' R. lanatum'') * ''R.'' subsect. ''Maculifera'' (6 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Neriiflora'' (19 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Parishia'' (3 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Pontica'' (13 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Selensia'' (5 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Taliensia'' (20 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Thomsonia'' (7 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Venatora'' (one species, ''R. venator'') * ''R.'' subsect. ''Williamsiana'' (one species, ''R. williamsianum'') Section ''Pentanthera'' (2 subsections) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Pentanthera'' (G. Don) Pojarkova (15 species) * ''R.'' subsect. ''Sinensia'' (one species: '' Rhododendron molle'')

Cultivation

This subgenus includes the majority of the larger evergreen rhododendrons widely grown as

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...

s. Some species, notably ''

Rhododendron ponticum ''Rhododendron ponticum'', called common rhododendron or pontic rhododendron, is a species of ''Rhododendron'' native to the Iberian Peninsula in southwest Europe and the Caucasus region in northern West Asia. Description ''R. ponticum'' is a d ...

'', have escaped from cultivation and become invasive in some regions such as

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

References

Bibliography

*Huxley, A., ed. (1992). ''New RHS Dictionary of Gardening''. Macmillan. *

External links

Germplasm Resources Information Network: ''Rhododendron'' subgenus ''Hymenanthes''
Hymenanthes Plant subgenera {{Ericaceae-stub