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Upright growing evergreen shrubs or small trees with remarkable features.  The glossy reddish to deep mahogany bark is smooth and peeling and is, in my opinion, the finest in the genus for ornamentation.  The new growth is bright reddish-purple and the narrowly elliptic leaves are a deep shiny green.  An added foliage feature is the bright glaucous white waxy coating on the undersides of the leaves.  This glaucous coating is also present on the small but densely clustered, reddish-purple to deep purple, bell-shaped flowers, giving the appearance of a bunch of grapes in bud and in full bloom.  A completely unique species unrelated to any other rhododendron.  Requires excellent drainage and a protected site (near a building or under conifers).  Native of W Yunnan, N Burma and SE Tibet where it occurs from 8,000 to 11,000 ft. in forests, thickets and on rocks.  A real conversation piece

1977/690  KW#20682:BRO  (+25).

1998sd372  CCHH#8080:RSBG  (+10\R2\4).  Grown form my collection of seed at 8,200 ft. in the Biluoxue Shan of W Yunnan, China.  Choice.

1998sd398  CCHH#8119:RSBG  (+10\R2\4).  An evergreen  shrub or small tree that is quite distinct from any other species. Really fantastic smooth and peeling purple-black bark and glossy deep green leaves with a pure white waxy coating on the undersides.  The small flattened bell-shaped flowers occur in clusters in early spring.  They are deep purple with a white waxy coating.  These are large seedlings grown from my collection of seed at 8,000 ft. along the Burma border in W Yunnan.  A personal favorite with, in my opinion, the finest bark in the genus. 

2000sd471  BASE#9530:RSBG  (+10\R2\4).  Grown from my collection of seed at 8,350 ft. in the Biluoxue Shan of W Yunnan.  Choice.

DGEY#101  Grown from our collection of seed at 8,500 ft. in the gorge of the Dulong River in extreme NW Yunnan near the Burma border.  (+10\R2\4)  RSBG#270sd2001