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A newly discovered (2011) and described species (way to go Jens Nielsen!) from the Yunnan/Myanmar frontier, this may be most closely related to R. hanceanum which is known from far to the north in Sichuan. This does not appear to be a large-growing shrub having been recorded as reaching only one to two meters in the wild. The remarkable foliage is quite unlike any other species that I have seen. It emerges reddish-purple with the appearance of being coated with a dull wax. The deep green and shiny leaves are bright glaucous-white beneath. The small, white, funnel-shaped flowers (early spring) are strongly marked with red spots and splashes - quite striking!
An amazing and very distinct species from the temperate rainforests of the Eastern Himalaya. This species has remarkable stiff and leathery, narrowly heart-shaped leaves to around three inches long - each leaf covered with long silky silvery hairs. The new growth emerges bright red-purple and is complemented by the small, bright yellow flowers. Very slow-growing and requiring excellent drainage. Not very hardy so best in a container in colder climates (Pacific NW for example!) but quite happy rootbound in a pot due to its epiphytic nature. A real beauty and very different from any other species. Long lost in cultivation but recently reintroduced from the wild.
Upright but compact-growing evergreen shrubs with beautiful smooth and peeling, deep red-brown bark. The rather stiff and thick foliage is quite attractive, glossy green on the upper surface with golden scales on the lower. The flowers (late winter indoors, early spring outdoors) are bright to deep yellow and bell-shaped with flaring lobes. It is a very distinct and, in my opinion, a rather stunning species. Native to W Yunnan, China and adjacent N Myanmar where it grows as an epiphyte or in other exceptionally well-drained areas such as on rocks and cliffs. These are grown from a hand-pollination using plants resulting from the only re-collection of this very rare species since it was originally collected by Kingdon Ward in the “Triangle” of N Myanmar in 1953.
A newly introduced dwarf species with small bell-shaped rose-purple flowers in the autumn, very distinctive small and very dark gray-green elliptic leaves and a very dwarf and compact, but “tree-like” habit. Native to the eastern Himalaya, this is basically the western “purple” flowered form of the yellow-flowered monanthum from the Yunnan/Myanmar frontier although they are easily distinguished visually. An epiphyte in the wild, this requires excellent drainage, great in a moss-lined hanging basket. This is a very rare taxon in cultivation which has been introduced from the wild only this one time (2005).
Over-the-top ornamental evergreen shrubs with smooth and peeling bark. The distinctive foliage is extremely attractive with a heavily puckered (bullate) texture above and a thick tawny indumentum below. The large and fragrant white to white flushed pink flowers appear in mid-spring. Requires sharp drainage. Great in a container or on an old stump or log. From seed collected in the wild in the Sino-Himalaya.
Over-the-top ornamental evergreen shrubs with smooth and peeling bark. The distinctive foliage is extremely attractive with a heavily puckered (bullate) texture above and a thick tawny indumentum below. The large and fragrant white to white flushed pink flowers appear in mid-spring. Requires sharp drainage. Great in a container or on an old stump or log. The hairs on the leaves on plants from this end (eastern) of the range of the species have a golden hue. From seed collected in the wild in the Sino-Himalaya.
Over-the-top ornamental evergreen shrubs with smooth and peeling bark. The distinctive foliage is extremely attractive with a heavily puckered (bullate) texture above and a thick tawny indumentum below. The large and fragrant white to white flushed pink flowers appear in mid-spring. Requires sharp drainage. Great in a container or on an old stump or log. The hairs on the leaves on plants from this end (western) of the range of the species have a silvery hue. From seed collected in the wild in the Sino-Himalaya. Large plants this year.
Plants grown from this collection are what I am assuming (hoping) will be the hardiest form of this generally tender species. These are grown from a collection made at a very high elevation on the tallest mountain in N Vietnam where it grew with several other reliably hardy (in the Pac NW anyway) species. This forms an open-growing evergreen shrub with smooth and shiny peeling bark. The distinctive glossy leaves are extremely attractive with a heavily puckered (bullate) texture above and a thick tawny-orange indumentum below. The large and fragrant, typically white flushed deep rose flowers appear in mid-spring. Requires sharp drainage and great in a container. The foliage on this form is stunningly beautiful. Excellent on an old stump or log.
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