Rhododendron vireya Calavar - Tropical Rhododendron

Rhododendron 'Calavar' is a compact tropical hybrid, often wider than it is tall. It is ornamental both for its foliage and its flowering. The young leaves emerge in original shades of pinkish-orange, which then darken before turning dark green at maturity. The mature foliage, with its glossy surface, particularly highlights the superb single, deep pink flowers with a yellow centre for a beautiful effect. Easy to maintain in a pot due to its limited size, this small Rhododendron, which is not very hardy, can be grown anywhere and brought indoors for protection in winter.

Rhododendrons are plants in the Ericaceae family, which includes over a hundred genera, such as Heathers, Bilberries, or Strawberry Trees as well as others that are less common but very ornamental, such as Oxydendron arboreum, or Tree Pieris. The genus Rhododendron includes about 850 species, ranging from shrubs to trees over 15 metres tall, and also includes Azaleas, another name for some Rhododendrons. The systematic classification of this prolific genus is relatively complex, with subdivisions into subgenera, sections, and subsections. While we are familiar with garden Rhododendrons, approximately 300 tropical species are grouped in the Vireya section.
'Calavar' is a tropical hybrid variety, resulting from the crossbreeding between Rhododendron konori, native to Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, reaching a height of 3.50 metres and producing fragrant flowers in a range of colours from white to red, and Rhododendron zoelleri, a species that grows in the same geographical area, producing bi-coloured flowers in vibrant colours, and developing into a small tree in sparsely wooded areas or plains, or as an epiphytic shrub (using trees as support) in dense, tall forests.
Much more compact than its parents, 'Calavar' forms a semi-epiphytic shrub that reaches a height of only 60 cm and spreads to 80 cm in about ten years. It is adorned with large, evergreen elliptical, beautiful dark green leves with a glossy surface, carried on relatively short petioles. The young leaves are even more decorative as they emerge in shades of pinkish-orange, then turn coppery before gradually greening. The young shoots thus create a beautiful contrast on the dark mature foliage. This foliage also serves as a backdrop for the superb trumpet-shaped flowers. In its native regions, this compact shrub blooms almost all year round, with more intensity in spring and autumn. It then produces large single flowers, measuring 6.5 cm in length, with a tube-shaped base (referred to as gamopetalous flowers, with fused petals) that opens at the end into an almost flat corolla. The very rounded petals are a deep pink and the yellow centre from which the stamens emerge creates a happy contrast of colours. Measuring 6 to 8 cm in diameter, the flowers appear for several months.

Rhododendron vireya are tropical plants, and 'Calavar' is difficult to grow outdoors all year round in our climates. Mild areas could be suitable as this variety can tolerate up to -4°C, but it requires a level of atmospheric humidity. In these conditions, you can grow it alongside tree ferns like the architectural Cyathea australis. With its highly divided fronds grouped at the top of an almost black stipe, this plant invariably evokes tropical zones. In most cases, it is better to grow this Rhododendron in a pot, which will also allow you to provide it with a suitable acidic substrate. To create an exotic atmosphere, you can place the pot in a shaded bed made up of tropical-looking plants for the summer. For light, plant some Marsh Hibiscus, such as the spectacular Hibiscus moscheutos 'Midnight Marvel', whose huge red flowers never fail to amaze. The aptly named Albizia 'Tropical Dream' can also be part of the decor, with its fern-like leaves and fluffy pink flowers. Let a Passionflower climb up its trunk, with its flowers as architectural as they are beautiful, to further enhance the tropical theme, while a Magnolia macrophylla will provide the necessary shade for your Rhododendron 'Calavar' with its huge leaves over 60 cm long, evoking the exuberance of the tropics, even though it is perfectly hardy in our climates.