Category: Plants of IndiaPage 3 of 4

70 Plants from India to celebrate 70 years of Indian independence

Cedrus deodara

41. Cedrus deodara (G. Don) G. Don PINACEAE Deodar, Himalayan cedar; Hindi: devdar, देवदार With its gracefully pendent branches and pyramidal shape, this was perhaps the most familiar of…

Corylus jacquemontii

42. Corylus jacquemontii Decaisne CORYLACEAE Jacquemont’s hazel This tree was named for the French botanist and writer Victor Jacquemont, who travelled in the Himalaya in 1830. The tree is…

Magnolia campbellii ‘Charles Rafill’

43. Magnolia campbellii J.D. Hooker & Thomson, cultivar ‘Charles Rafill’ MAGNOLIACEAE In the wild Magnolia campbellii occurs from eastern Nepal to western Yunnan in China, including the Indian States…

Mahonia acanthifolia

44. Mahonia acanthifolia Wall ex. G. Don BERBERIDACAEAE This shrub, which has attractive, scented, yellow flowers, occurs from Uttarakhand in India to South-West China, at altitudes of 2000 to…

Clematis montana

45. Clematis montana De Candolle RANUNCULACEAE A widespread and very variable Sino-Himalayan species, this is one of the best-known Himalayan plants in British gardens, occurring in a variety of…

Rhododendron hodgsonii

46. Rhododendron hodgsonii J.D. Hooker ERICACEAE This large shrub or small tree of the eastern Himalaya (Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan) was named by Joseph Hooker after Brian Houghton Hodgson…

Rhododendron thomsonii

47. Rhododendron thomsonii J.D. Hooker ERICACEAE Dr. Thomson’s Rhododendron A native of the eastern Himalaya, this is one of the many species of rhododendron discovered by Joseph Hooker in…

Pinus bhutanica

48. Pinus bhutanica Grierson, Long & Page PINACEAE This species was distinguished from the blue pine (Pinus wallichiana, Number 13 of the Trail) only in 1980, as part of…

Dryopteris wallichiana

49. Dryopteris wallichiana (Sprengel) Hylander DRYOPTERIDACEAE A fern, very similar to the native British male fern (Dryopteris filix-mas), first described from Nepal, where this specimen was collected. It has…

Yushania anceps

50. Yushania anceps (Mitford) W.C. Lin GRAMINEAE A temperate bamboo from Jaunsar in the North-West Himalaya (Uttarakhand), where it occurs in cool temperate forest at altitudes of 2000 to…

Pinus wallichiana

51. Pinus wallichiana A.B. Jackson PINACEAE Blue pine; Hindi: kail, काएल The needles of this pine are grouped in bundles of five. The tree occurs in the Himalaya from…

Cryptomeria japonica

52. Cryptomeria japonica (L. f.) D. Don CUPRESSACEAE Japanese cedar This conifer is native to China and Japan, but is planted as a fast-growing timber tree in the East…

Aesculus indica

53. Aesculus indica (Cambessedes) Hooker HIPPOCASTANACEAE Indian horse chestnut; Hindi: ban akhrot, वन अख्रोट A large, deciduous tree that can reach a height of over 30 metres in the…

Fraxinus xanthoxyloides

54. Fraxinus xanthoxyloides (G. Don) A. De Candolle OLEACEAE Crab ash, Afghan ash This specimen was grown from seed collected in 1984 by RBGE horticulturist and alpine-specialist Ron McBeath…

Prunus cornuta

55. Prunus cornuta (Royle) Steudel ROSACEAE Himalayan bird-cherry This specimen was grown from seed collected in Nepal in 1950 by Donald Lowndes. The plant has a widespread wild distribution…

Primula denticulata

56. Primula denticulata Smith PRIMULACEAE Drumstick primula, purple Nepal cowslip, Kirrie dumpling This spring-flowering plant is native to the Sino-Himalayan region (from Afghanistan to South-West China). In India it…

Bergenia stracheyi

57. Bergenia stracheyi (J.D. Hooker & Thomson) Engler SAXIFRAGACEAE This species is a more distinguished relative of the rather coarse, but more commonly grown, Bergenia purpurascens. It is an…

Anemone trullifolia

58. Anemone trullifolia J.D. Hooker & Thomson RANUNCULACEAE A widespread Sino-Himalayan plant occurring in alpine turf at altitudes of 3500 to 4500 metres from Nepal to South-West China, including…

Pieris formosa

59. Pieris formosa (Wallich) D. Don ERICACEAE This attractive, but poisonous, evergreen member of the heather family is a widespread Sino-Himalayan species occurring from Nepal to Central China. It…

Persicaria campanulata

60. Persicaria campanulata (J.D. Hooker) Ronse Decraene POLYGONACEAE This pink-flowered herbaceous plant is native to the Sino-Himalaya from Uttarakhand eastwards to western Yunnan. It was first found by Joseph…