Flowering Rhododendrons 2022
To every rhododendron, turn, turn, turn, there is a season. Early, mid, or late, rhododendrons in my garden flower from late winter through spring, and some hardy (and silly) souls struggle on into the heat of summer. What an amazing collection of shrubs they are. And how wonderfully they overlap with the last of the Camellias, and the first of the roses.
Here are some photographs of what I'd dare call the mid-season bloomers. They flower when late spring is trying to sneak into early summer. Where one day it's twenty six degrees Celsius and gale nor-west winds are blowing the last of the blossom off the trees. Where the next day drops to three degrees overnight - grab the extra duvet, put on the electric blanket. Ridiculously inconstant from gardening day to gardening day. Nothing calm and gradual about spring turning into summer.
But the rhododendrons, from the delicate pastels to the booming brights, flower on, oblivious. As long as it doesn't get too hot...