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The yellow bush.
Rhododendron campanulatum, Kunde
village, Nepal
Rhododendron similar to this flourish throughout the Himalaya. Some species, and this is one, can grow to ten metres or more in height but need a favourable environment to achieve this.
This photo was taken in the rocky slopes behind Kunde hospital in the Mt. Everest region. At 3840m Kunde winters are cold and growth is slow. In 1967 while living in Kunde I transplanted small rhododendron around the hospital. Today, the tallest of these is less than 1.5 metres. Slow progress in thirty years!
Rhododendron campanulatum is the commonest tree rhododendron in the sub-alpine forests and often forms the tree limit with Betula utilis Himalayan silver birch. Flower cover varies from white to deep mauve.
I am indebted for these botanical notes to Bill Sykes, the noted Himalayan botanist, who accompanies our botanical treks in Nepal.Next month: The grunting cow.
Black dots on the Tibetan landscape
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To see more of Himalayan rhododendron see our
Rhododendron tour to the middle
hills of Nepal
return to the photo page from which this account originates.
revision 18 Mar 2001
http://www.greenkiwi.co.nz/footprints/photo/ph9810.htm
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