Botany Photo of the Day

Today's photograph of a plant in UBC Botanical Garden was shared by Chris Klapwijk of Surrey, BC. Chris is responsible for a number of local gardening or garden web sites, including the Alpine Garden Club of BC, Darts Hill Park and the Fraser South Rhododendron Society. He also contributes on the rhododendrons discussion forum when he has an opportunity. Many thanks, Chris!

There's little information online about Rhododendron parmulatum 'Ocelot'. The best source is a short paragraph on page 8 of the May 2002 newsletter (PDF) of the Vancouver Rhododendron Society, which I suspect was written by Douglas Justice:

“Rhododendron parmulatum is a seldom encountered species in Section Neriiflora. It was discovered by Kingdon Ward in 1924 growing in very wet conditions on steep slopes, cliffs and rocks at 10,000 to 12,000 feet in SE Tibet. Not surprisingly, the species requires excellent drainage. In the Botanical Garden, a handsome specimen of the cultivar ‘Ocelot’ ... was flowering in late April in a lightly shaded part of the David C. Lam Asian Garden. The cultivar won an RHS Award of Merit (AM) in 1977.”

I note that the Royal Horticultural Society has subsequently retracted the Award of Garden Merit, but I don't know the rationale. Perhaps lack of availability?

The Flora of China provides a scientific description of Rhododendron parmulatum.

Natural history resource link: Bev Wigney's weblog, Burning Silo, is “a place where nature, photography and writing meet”. Bev is based in eastern Ontario, and if you are particularly interested in her photographs, you can visit her photo galleries.