QBARS - v8n2 R. javanicum
R. Javanicum
By Del James, Eugene, Oregon
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Fig. 18. Mr. and Mrs. Del James with
R. javanicum
, grown and
bloomed for the
first time December 25, 1953. |
Rhododendron javanicum and some of its close relatives have been in cultivation for three quarters of a century, giving rise to a race of hybrids known as the Javanicum or Javanese hybrids. They are green house plants. All are strictly warm house plants. Although some 200 species are listed, very few seem to be in cultivation. They have perhaps been insufficiently studied taxonomically for series groups to be determined, so, for want oft more definite information, all of them are being placed under the single classification of the Javanicum series. When grown in pots or tubs, they bloomed well, and flower almost continuously throughout the year, new flowering shoots being formed constantly. Some of the species, and particularly the hybrids, are of great beauty. The 1954 Rhododendron and Camellia Year Book mentions that the R. javanicum hybrids potted up in the conventional way and grown in an Orchid House did not flourish too well, but when potted or grown on small wooden platforms were very successful. The enclosed picture is taken with a plant of R. javanicum which was bloomed for the first time December 25, 1953 and grown by Mr. and Mrs. Del James. The flowers are a clear rose color, two inches long, and two and one half inches across, with slender tube flaring wide at the edge.
