Deliver on Spring bling: Ciar Byrne says roll up for the rhody present with a burst of joyful color

This has been an extended, chilly winter and I am prepared for some color and pleasure within the backyard. Simply in time, rhododendrons and azaleas placed on their bling spring present in acid pinks, reds and purples.

Rhododendrons are one of many oldest plant species on Earth. They’ve existed for a minimum of 55 million years and are discovered within the wild in upland habitats throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.

Azaleas are a part of the identical household, however are smaller, extra sweetly scented and could be deciduous, whereas rhododendrons are evergreen. Each want soil with a excessive PH and plenty of rain.

Alpine journey

The primary rhododendron to be labeled and named was R. hirsutum, the Alpine rose, found by the pioneering Sixteenth-century Flemish botanist Charles l’Ecluse within the Alps. Within the 18th century, collectors started to deliver seeds again to England from North America and, later, from Asia.

In London, the gardens of Kenwood Home on Hampstead Heath, designed by Humphry Repton, boast a blinding show of rhododendrons in spring, beneath Scots pines and mature beech bushes. A quarry kinds the right surroundings for banks of those shiny evergreens, with highlights together with R. ‘Cynthia’, with its deep rose-pink flowers.

Dazzling: Beloved of plant collectors previously, rhododendrons at the moment are widespread

Exbury Gardens within the New Forest (exbury.co.uk) is one other good spot to search out hybrid cultivars of rhododendron bred by the de Rothschild household, blooming from now till Might, starting with pale pink R. ‘Christmas Cheer’.

At Leonardslee in West Sussex (leonardsleegardens.co.uk), the second baronet Sir Edmund Loder was a eager plant collector who gave his identify to R. loderi, which is sweetly scented with blush-pink flowers. The Dell at Leonardslee is house to a Cornish Pink rhododendron planted within the 1800s with curving stems which have grown to a top of 10m.

Use rainwater

Additional north, the steeply sided valleys within the gardens of Muncaster Fortress in Cumbria (muncaster.co.uk) present the right microclimate for what was as soon as thought of the best assortment of rhododendrons in Europe, created by the sixth baronet Sir John Ramsden.

Not all varieties are welcome. In Scotland, R. ponticum has grow to be problematic. It is likely one of the targets of Mission Wipeout, a marketing campaign began by the Nationwide Belief for Scotland in 2020 to free the pure surroundings of invasive plant species.

If you wish to develop your individual non-invasive rhododendrons or azaleas, select a website with dappled shade in a sheltered place, with moist, acid soil.

Incorporate natural matter with a excessive PH into the planting gap, corresponding to composted tree bark, leaf mould, decomposing spruce or pine needles. Do not plant too deeply — simply cowl the roots then apply a 7cm mulch. When watering, use rainwater, as faucet water incorporates an excessive amount of calcium. When you’ve got present rhodys, apply mulch now.

In case your soil is alkaline like mine, strive rising compact hybrids in a container stuffed with ericaceous compost.

R. ‘Percy Wiseman’ is a beautiful peaches-and-cream yakushimanum hybrid, whereas R. ‘Blue Danube’ is an evergreen azalea with violet funnel-shaped flowers. Each maintain an RHS Award of Backyard Benefit.