Section 111.—Flowers with scarcely any glutinous hairs. Stamens much longer than the corolla.
G. Azalea periclymena, Persoon (A. nudijlora, Willd. ; pericly menoides, Michaux; coccinea, speciosa, rubra, rutilans, carnea, alba, papilionacea, partita, polyandra, of the Gardens). Leaves flat, nearly hairless, except the midrib, which is bristly. Tube of the corolla much longer than the limb, which is white. Found wild on the sides of hills, in woods all over North America, where it In called Upright Honeysuckle—a name which it well merits for its fragrance and beauty. It is a smaller plant than A. viscose, rarely exceeding the height of a man, and being generally much shorter, and exceedingly branched. By botanists it was formerly distinguished by its flowers appearing before its leaves, whence it was called A. rudiflora ; but as this in an uncertain circumstance, the name we have adopted from Persoon deserves the preference. Its leaves are bright green, and nearly smooth on the upper side, flat, and by no means puckered or wavy ; their under side and the branches are slightly downy, and their margin covered with stiff hairs.
7. Azalea canescens, Michaux (A. bicolor, Pursh). Leaves hoary, especially beneath, where they are also downy ; their midrib without any stiff hairs. Tube of the corolla of about the length of the limb, which is white. On barren sandy hills, in the southern parts of the United States, on the banks of rivers in South Carolina, and on the mountains of Virginia, this species grows wild ; it resembles A. pericly mena very much, but is a tenderer plant, and has the same gray appearance which renders A. glauect so conspicuous an object. Its flowers are small and white, with a deep rosy-red tube ; they appear the earliest of the American species.
8. Azalea calendulacea, Michaux. Leaves convex, shining, bright green, slightly hairy on both sides, reflexed and wavy at the edge ; their midrib without stiff hairs. Tube of the corolla not longer than the broad orange-coloured or scarlet limb. A native of moist places in the southern states of North America ; sometimes inhabiting the banks of rivers, but more frequently adorning the mountains with a garment of living scarlet.
9. Azalea arborescens, Pursh. Leaves covered on the under side by a glaucous bloom, and smooth on both sides. Tube of corolla longer than the segments. Calyx with leafy divisions. The only botanist who has described this remarkable plant is Pursh, who says it grows on rivulets near the Blue Ridge in Pennsylvania, flowering from May to July. He epeaks of it thus :—" This beautiful species has, to my knowledge, not yet been introduced into the gardens. I have only seen it in its native place, and in the garden of Mr. John Bertram, near Philadelphia.. It rises from 10 to 20 feet high, and forms, with its elegant foliage and large abundant rose-coloured flowers, the finest ornamental shrub I know. The flowers are not so much pubescent as
the rest of the species ; the scales of the flower-buds are large, yellowish-brown, surrounded with a fringed white border." Section IV.—Flowers entirely destitute of glutinous hairs. Stamens short. Corolla bell-shaped.
10. Azalea Sinensis (A. pontica; A. Sinensis, 'Botanical Register,' plate 1253). Leaves downy on both sides, sharp-pointed, glaucous beneath, reflexed and wavy at the edges. Flowers covered externally only with a fine silkiness; their tube much shorter than the bell shaped limb, the divisions of which are acute. Introduced from China by the late Mr. W. Wells, of Redleaf, about the year 1826, and supposed to be a native of that country. Its leaves are very like those of Azalea pontica, except that they are glaucous underneath, and its flowers are of a bright clear ochry yellow ; it is even supposed to be a mere variety of that species. Its bell-shaped corolla, however, without any glandular or other conspicuous hairs on the outside, and with scarcely any tube, distinguishes it sufficiently. The segments of the corolla are broadly ovate, slightly wavy, and the upper one is distinctly dotted in the manner of a rhododendron.
11. Azalea Indica, Linnreue. Leaves obovate, flat, green on both sides, and very abundantly clothed with stiffish brown hairs. Flowers quite smooth externally ; their tube much shorter than the bell-shaped limb, the divisions of which are rounded. Calyx small and very hispid; stamens five. This and the following are the most beautiful plants which exist in the rich flora of China, where they far exceed in splendour of appearance the camellias, moutans, chrysanthemums, and roses of that favoured climate. This forms a bush varying in height from two to six feet, with the branches usually drooping, and covered when young with rigid brown hairs. The leaves are deep green, flat, and half evergreen, usually tinged with brown, in conse quence of the many brown hairs with which they are clothed. The flowers are large and showy, and gaily marked with brilliant colours. The calyx is very small, and closely covered with stiff hairs. There are many varieties, of which the Brick Red, the Double Purple, and the Variegated are the principal.
12. Azalea ledifolia, Hooker. Leaves obovate, flat, evergreen, green on both sides, and clothed with brown hairs. Flowers quite smooth externally ; their tube much shorter than the bell-shaped limb, the divisions of which are dilated and wavy: Calyx with leafy acute sepals ; stamens ten. A native of China, and less impatient of cold than the last, from which it chiefly differs in its leafy calyx, evergreen less rusty shining leaves, larger flowers, and more numerous stamens. There are two varieties in the gardens, the White and the Royal Purple, or Phcenicea.