Rhododendron dauricum, in flower since mid-January. A good show of purple flowers on this native to east and north Asia, the seed from which this plant grew was collected on Hokkaido Island, Japan. A hardy species that is one of the first of the genera to flower, it does rely on a frost free winter to prolong the flowering as early sun directed on frozen blooms is fatal.
![](http://stories.rbge.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Rhododendron-dauricum-19791541A-4a.jpg)
Rhododendron dauricum 19791541A