Rhododendrons or the Tree Roses

Photo credits: www.explore-kew-garden.net, www.rhodygarden.org
Memory tags: Seeing Rhododendrons flower in Shillong, especially my grand patriarch and reading Kingdon Ward’s Assam Adventure.

The resplendent rhododendrons were christened tree roses by the Greeks. I have a special friend, a grand old patriarch, standing in splendid isolation, in the middle of a field. Around Valentines Day, he shyly begins to offer bunches of red rhododendrons. Then as the days grow warmer, he offers a riot of red blooms against dark green leaves. I have always loved him for his spectacular flowers and handsome foliage. The latter gives him dignity and  grace even when there are no blooms! He is one, among an approximate 600 species that make up his family, the Ericaceace.

A well thumbed book, "Assam Adventure", introduced the rhododendrons to me in all their glory and variety. It is written by the renowned botanist Kingdon Ward, published in 1941, it chronicles his visit to the Balipara Frontier Tract in 1935 and to Tibet in 1938. My paternal bookworm, my father, bought it fresh off the shelves in 1942 and read through quiet evenings in Sylhet, where he was District Magistrate. Now this daughter of his thumbs the self same volume, places paper bookmarks as he would and reads with delight. Genes don’t lie! My annual pilgrimage in March is to take the road off highway 44, through the Eastern Air Command   and Upper Shillong area when the rhododendrons bloom. The red rhododendron species we see here belong to the tree variety. Other species range from 2 inch dwarfs to 80 feet giants.  They prefer the mountainous region of the northern hemisphere, that stretch from the Himalayan Mountains in Uttarakhand, Nepal and Sikkim to Yunnan and Sichuan, to the mountains of Indo-China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan. The tropics are not without their share from Southeast Asia to northern Australia, with 55 known species in Borneo and 164 in New Guinea.  Relatively fewer species occur in North America (55 species) and Europe. Strangely enough, Rhododendrons have not been found in South America or Africa. At this time of the year, I remember seeing an avenue of glorious giants in St. Paul’s School, Darjeeling. They stretched up into the Himalayan sky wearing cream, and soft pink flowers. Travelling from Mangan, in northern Sikkim one reaches the Shingba Rhododendron Sanctuary. Here one can see at least 20 different species of rhododendrons in bloom in spring! It’s definitely on my travel plans next year.

 Famed for their ornamental beauty, the evergreens in the group are the rhododendrons while the deciduous are the azaleas. On the slopes of the East Khasi hills pink and white azaleas are common.  The tall evergreens with their bunches of  brilliant red flowers are beginning to put out their blossoms all over these hills now.  The rhododendrons in the world famous Kew Gardens in England will be in full bloom in May.  The Rhododendron Dell in Kew Gardens contains over 700 specimen and some unique hybrids that are found only there. This Dell is one of Kew’s most-visited famed single plant type exhibits. These rhododendrons were collected and sent back from Sikkim by Joseph Dalton Hooker and planted in the early 1850s.  At that time, a highly-respected gardener and writer named Donald Beaton called this display "the Sikkim of Kew" and rated it the finest England!

I wish I had the time and space to bring you the lyrical magic of Kingdon Ward, a master naturalist at work!   Camping at 14,000 ft in the greater Himalayas in a rhododendron covered grassy dell he finds two dwarf and one aromatic rhododendron. The latter, Rhododendron lanatum, is one of the few economic species in Tibet. Its thick coat of reddish brown hairs under the leaves is peeled off and used as wicks in oil lamps! Besides this, he writes of the aromatic leaves of Rhododendron konboense. They are burnt daily as religious offerings by the rich householders of the Kongbo  area. Does the creator smile when we offer him some of his own beautiful creations in prayer?

Main references:

1. Kingdon Ward, “Assam Adventure”
2. JD Hooker, “ Himalayan Adventure” Published by Today & Tomorrow’s Publishers, New Delhi, 1999.
3. “Rhododendron Dell”www.kew.org/kew-gardens/attractions/rhododendron-dell