Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Ericales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Rhododendron periclymenoides
FAMILY
Ericaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read more about Pinxterflower at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
R. periclymenoides is a member of what the Azalea Society of America refers to as "the pink group". Read more here.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Rhododendron periclymenoides
FAMILY
Ericaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Rhododendron periclymenoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 145-05-009:
Rhododendron nudiflorum FAMILY Ericaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Azalea nudiflora
COMMON NAME:
Pinxterflower, Pinxterbloom Azalea, Election Pink, Pinxter Azalea
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_aznu_001_lvd
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USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide pnd_rhpe4_002_lvd
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JK Marlow jkm0502b_13
February Oconee County SC
Rhododendron buds are shaped like a football....
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Roxanna Martin rlm22711_58
February Spartanburg County SC
Rhododendron have terminal buds with several imbricate scales, per Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004).
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Roxanna Martin rlm22711_59
February Spartanburg County SC
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JK Marlow jkm060410_018
April Greenville County SC
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JK Marlow jkm060410_021
April Greenville County SC
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JK Marlow jkm130430_854
April Spartanburg County SC
Leaves generally elliptical to obovate in shape, per American Azaleas (Towe, 2004).
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JK Marlow jkm210413_9493
April Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
Most flowers have dark pink to strawberry red tubes, per American Azaleas (Towe, 2004).
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JK Marlow jkm210413_9498
April Greenville County SC
Blackwell Heritage Preserve
Flower tubes typically covered with non-glandular hairs, per American Azaleas (Towe, 2004).
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Roxanna Martin rlm41110_157
April Spartanburg County SC
)
Roxanna Martin rlm4710_069
April Spartanburg County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm0405e_33
May Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
Flowers appearing with or before the leaves, per Weakley's Flora.
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Rhododendron periclymenoides
FAMILY
Ericaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Rhododendron periclymenoides
FAMILY
Ericaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Rhododendron periclymenoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 145-05-009:
Rhododendron nudiflorum
FAMILY
Ericaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Azalea nudiflora
1228
Shrub
Perennial
Habitat: Moist to dry slopes and streambanks, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common (rare in GA Coastal Plain)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Deciduous
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Spring
Pink
Slightly bilaterally symmetrical
5-lobed calyx
5-lobed funnelform corolla
5 stamens, 1.3-1.5X as long as corolla
Superior ovary
Bisexual
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- American Azaleas (Towe, 2004) p023
- Gardening with Native Plants of the South (Wasowski & Wasowski, 1994, 2020) p084
- Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002) p255
- Great Smoky Mountains Wildflowers (Campbell, Hutson, Sharp, & Hutson, 1962) p046
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 1st ed. (Porcher & Rayner, 2001) p199
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p245
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p449
- How to Recognize Shrubs (Grimm, 1966) p216
- Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast (Foote & Jones, 1989) p106
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p300
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p177
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p172
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p101
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p304
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p291
- Wildflowers of the Sandhills Region (Sorrie, 2011) p144
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".