Rhododendron ponticum
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| Rhododendron ponticum L. |
Rhododendron ponticum, called Common Rhododendron or Pontic Rhododendron, is a species of Rhododendron native to southern Europe and southwest Asia. In Europe, it occurs in two areas, in Spain and northern Portugal, and in southeast Bulgaria, and in Asia from Turkey south to the Lebanon and east to Georgia and the Krasnodar area of southern Russia.
It is a dense, suckering shrub growing to 5 m tall, rarely 8 m. The leaves are evergreen, 6-18 cm long and 2-5 cm broad. The flowers are 3.5-5 cm diameter, violet-purple, often with small greenish-yellow spots or streaks. The fruit is a dry capsule 15-25 mm long, containing numerous small seeds.
There are two subspecies:
- Rhododendron ponticum subsp. ponticum. Bulgaria east to Georgia.
- Rhododendron ponticum subsp. baeticum (Boiss. & Reut.) Hand.-Mazz. Spain, Portugal.
[edit] History
Fossil evidence shows it had a much wider range across most of southern and western Europe before the ice ages until about 20,000 years ago.
Xenophon mentions that Greek soldiers in Asia Minor were poisoned by honey made from the flowers of R. ponticum.
[edit] Cultivation and uses
Rhododendron ponticum subsp. baeticum is one of the most extensively cultivated rhododendrons in western Europe, used both as an ornamental plant in its own right, and, more often, as a rootstock onto which other more attractive rhododendrons are grafted. The roots readily send up suckers from below the graft, often allowing it to overtake the intended grafted rhododendron. This, together with its abundant seed production, has led to it becoming an invasive species over much of western Europe and also in New Zealand. It has become a severe problem in the native Atlantic oakwoods of the west highlands of Scotland and in Wales, hindering the reproduction of the native flora. Rhododendron control or rhodie-bashing is thus a key element in nature preservation in such areas.
[edit] References
- Flora Europaea: Rhododendron ponticum
- Germplasm Resources Information Network: Rhododendron ponticum
- Centre for Conservation Strategy: Rhododendron ponticum in Britain
- Milne, R. I., & Abbott, R. J. (2000). Origin and evolution of invasive naturalized material of Rhododendron ponticum L. in the British Isles. Molecular Ecology 9: 541-556 Abstract.
