Whilst I've been away...

...the rhododendron has flowered.

This particular rhodie was given to us by David Younger of the Younger Botanic Garden family about 15 years ago. However , despite growing into a sizeable tree, it has never flowered - a fact I blipped back in January 2010.

The weekend before I left for New Zealand Cathleen noticed buds on it and now a fortnight later it has lots of large , white / yellow flowers with a deep red / purple base. But they don't seem to last long as some are already brown and decaying - although they won't have been helped by a couple of frosts last week.

I wonder if any blipper can identify the type of rhododendron? I think I saw one like it at Arduaine a couple of years ago.