Twig: Stout, smooth or slightly pubescent, yellowish green, vegetative buds small, flower buds are large and egg-shaped.
Bark: Thin, light grayish brown, becoming finely scaly with age.
Lucas Land
Mountain Rosebay or
Catawba Rhododendron
Rhododendron catawbiense
Leaf: Alternate (appears whorled at the ends of branches), evergreen, simple, pinnately veined, entire, elliptical, 3 to 6 inches long, dark green above, light green to whitish below.
Flower: Showy, deep pinkish-purple, funnel shaped, occurring in large (5 or more inches across) round clusters, appearing in late spring.
Fruit: Many tiny seeds borne in a long stemmed, red-brown, 5-parted capsule, 1/2 inch long, maturing in fall.
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