Rhododendron is The State Flower of HImachal Pradesh and National Flower Of Nepal. it is a beautiful and so important flower and plant. These plants are found in hilly areas of Himachal Pradesh as well as in Nepal, Bhutan etc in Alpine zones and sub-alpine zones in Eastern and Western Himalayas.
These flowers are so useful . From ancient period these flowers are being used for medicines of the plant Rhododendron has antioxidants,flavonoids a other phenolic compounds in a large amount so are used as anti-inflammatory.
The root of the plant is able to reduce the activity of NF-kB in rats.
Also these flowers are used in food by people. These flowers are dried and after that people make chutni
from these to eat with food and this chutni is so tasty . And people of local areas store these dried flowers in their homes to use these flowers even in off season.
Rhododendron is a genus of 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family(Ericaceae), either evergreen or decedous, and found mainly in Asia, although it is also widespread throughout the highlands of the Appalachian mountains of North America. It is the National Flower Of Nepal Most species have brightly coloured flowers which bloom from late winter through to early summer.
Azaleas make up two subgenera of Rhododendron. They are distinguished from "true" rhododendrons by having only five anthers per flower.
Rhododendron is a genus characterised by shrubs and small to (rarely) large trees, the smallest species growing to 10–100 cm (4–40 in) tall, and the largest, reported to 30 m (100 ft) tall. The leaves are spirally arranged; leaf size can range from 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) to over 50 cm (20 in), exceptionally 100 cm (40 in) They may be either evergreen or deciduous. In some species, the undersides of the leaves are covered with scales (lepidote) or hairs (indumentum). Some of the best known species are noted for their many clusters of large flowers. There are alpine species with small flowers and small leaves, and tropical species such that often grow as epiphytes Species in this genus may be part of the heath complex in oak-heath forest in eastern North America.
They have frequently been divided based on the presence or absence of scales on the abaxial (lower) leaf surface.These scales, unique to subgenus Rhododendron, are modified hairs consisting of a polygonal scale attached by a stalk.
Rhododendron are characterised by having infloresecence with scarious (dry) , a chromosome number of x=13, fruit that has a septicidal capsule an ovary that is superior (or nearly so),stamens that have no appendages, and agglutinate (clumped) pollen.
Species of the genus Rhododendron are widely distributed between latitudes 80°N and 20°S and are native to areas from North America to Europe,Russia and Asia, and from Greenland to Queenland to America.The centrres of divercity are in the Himalayas and Malasia with the greatest species diversity in the Sino-Himalayan region, Southwest China and northern Burma from Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Nepal to Sikkim and southeastern Tibet. Other significant areas of diversity are in the mountains of Korea, Japan and Taiwan More than 90% of Rhododendron sensu Chamberlain belong to the Asian subgenera Rhododendron, Hymenanthes and section Tsutsusi. Of the first two of these, the species are predominantly found in the area of the Himalayas and Southwest China (Sino-Himalayan Region).
The 300 tropical species within the Vireya section of subgenus Rhododendron occupy the Makay archipelago from their presumed Southeast Asian origin to Northern Australia, with 55 known species in Borneo and 164 in New Guinea The species in New Guinea are native to subalpine moistgrasslands at around 3,000 metres above sea level in the Central Highlands. Subgenera Rhododendron and Hymenanthes, together with section Pentanthera of subgenus Pentanthera are also represented to a lesser degree in the Mountainous areas of North America and WesternEurasia. Subgenus Tsutsusi is found in the maritime regions of East Asia(Japan, Korea, Taiwan,East China), but not in North America or Eurasia.
Planting and care
Like other ericaceous plants, most rhododendrons prefer acid soils with a pH of roughly 4.5-5.5; some tropical Vireyas and a few other rhododendron species grow as epiphytesand require a planting mix similar to orchids. Rhododendrons have fibrous roots and prefer well-drained soils high in organic material. In areas with poorly drained or alkaline soils, rhododendrons are often grown in raised beds using media such as composted pine bark. Mulching and careful watering are important, especially before the plant is established.
In Himachal Pradesh these plants are present in a large quantity so now these flowers are exported to neighbour states due to huge demands of these flowers.
You can see some photos of these plants and flowers ↴
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