Rhododendron fortunei

A large evergreen shrub or small tree, with an upright habit and matt, dark green leaves up to 18cm long. Produces loose clusters of 6-12 broadly funnel-shaped, fragrant, pale pink or lilac pink flowers sometimes fading to white, in mid- to late spring. This species can grow up to 10m high, though it rarely reaches this height in the UK. Introduced from China in 1855 and a parent of many hardy hybrids