Rhododendron Rhododendron / Azalea • シャクナゲ / ツツジ • 石楠花 / 躑躅 shakunage / tsutsuji
There was once a mature, 2-3′ tall roundly shaped azalea ‘Galathea’ in front of Kasuga lantern, where the main path forks into the East and West paths; Kathleen Smith featured it in her 2002 rhodie poster (which I’m trying to replicate this year). Alas, it’s gone, lost to something or another. Our Plant List informs that 3 ‘Galatheas’ were planted in 2007 in the same area (E) somewhere else, so I went to look for them – found them small, about 1′ tall, but because only after the bloom time I discovered the 4th, mature 4′ tall one in Z area, this youngsters will have to do for now…
SJG • 5/17/13 – Rhododendron ‘Galathea’ • Azalea, corolla brick-red; Area E. Seen here from the E path: the closer two have a fern between them, the one in the back is near the stream, where the growing there primroses of similar color seem to camouflage it as something else and a bit hard to see.
SJG • 5/17/13 – Rhododendron ‘Galathea’ • Azalea, corolla brick-red; Area E. That black thing in the middle is an ant visiting.
For some reason the search engine returns 3 top links to a Polish Union of Hybridizers (I didn’t ask for it, Poles must love this plant), and because the info there was better than the second page return of the English-language description (below), I’m including it here, in (reasonably good) google-translation:
Azalia ‘Galathea’ – Groups of Japanese azalea (inductive Kurume Azalea Azalea & kaempferi). Relatively fast-growing shrub, with a broad and wide-spreading habit. It grows up after 10 years to about 150 cm in height. The leaves are dark green, fall color staining to brązowozielonego. In cold and snowless winters lost a lot of leaves. Flowers are large, about 4 inches wide, dark red, growing in the second half of May. It requires a quiet and good winter coat. It belongs to the group of Glenn Dale.
origin explorer, farmer (selector): BYMorrison
introduction to trading: BY Morrison, 1947; U.S.
group of plants – heather (group information)
Consumer group – Japanese azaleas
form – bush
force growth – fast growing plant
Slice – bushy spreading
Target height – from 1 m to 2 m
color of leaves (needles) – dark
hardiness of leaves (needles) – semi-evergreen leaves
type of flowers – Single
inflorescence
flowers color – red
flowering May […]
Note from aleks: ‘brazowozielonego’ in ‘all color staining to brązowozielonego’ means ‘brownish-green’ leaves in fall (machine translation trouble with compound words); also, Poland has cold and snowy winters, hence warning about lost leaves, giving it a ‘quiet’ (screened) place and a ‘good winter coat’ (it’s not unusual in Poland to cover for winter delicate azaleas with straw and burlap or something similar).
From A Plant’s Home: […] Upright to widely spreading, twiggy, evergreen azalea developed primarily for cold hardiness along the mid-Atlantic states. Single, funnel-shaped, dull red flowers, 1 1/2 inches wide. Flowers are borne in showy trusses of 1 to 4 per cluster. Bloom time is late April in warmer areas and as late as early June in cooler climates. […]
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