The flower that has everything!

We have a very large collection of tender rhododendrons at Arduaine and this is one of my great favourites. Rhododendron veitchianum Cubittii Group 'Ashcombe' is its Sunday name and is a good example of how the cost of plant labels has risen in direct proportion to the length of the name and therefore the size of the label! The original species comes from Burma, Laos and Thailand and to quote the Hillier Manual of Trees & Shrubs, is 'only suitable for a conservatory'. Welcome to our outdoor conservatory!

A beautiful frilly flower which has everything - a lovely texture, a delicate shade of pink which fades as the corolla opens, a striking flame-coloured flare in the throat, a touch of pale green on the stigma - and a spicy fragrance. What more could be asked of a flower?