''Rhododendron mucronulatum'', the Korean rhododendron or Korean rosebay (; RR: Jindalrae), is a

rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; : ''rhododendra'') is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the Ericaceae, heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are native to eastern Asia and the Himalayan ...

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

native to

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, and parts of northern China. It is a

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

that grows to in height, with elliptic or elliptic-

lanceolate The following terms are used to describe leaf plant morphology, morphology in the description and taxonomy (biology), taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (that is, the leaf blade or 'lamina' is undivided) or compound (that is, the leaf blade ...

leaves, long by wide. The reddish-purple flowers appear in late winter or early spring, often on the bare branches before the foliage unfurls. It inhabits forested regions at . The Latin

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

''mucronulatum'' means "sharply pointed", referring to the leaf shape.

Cultivation

The cultivar 'Cornell Pink' has light pink flowers, and has gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. It includes the full range of cultivated p ...

. It is hardy down to but like most rhododendron species requires a sheltered position in dappled shade with acid soil that has been enriched with leaf mould.

Culinary use

, the flowers are used in pan-fried flower cakes called ''

hwajeon ''Hwajeon'', kkotbukkumi, kkotjijimi, () or flower cake is a small Korean pan-fried rice cake. It is made out of glutinous rice flour, honey and edible petals from seasonal flowers, such as rhododendron. It is eaten during the festivals of S ...

'', which are traditional for

Samjinnal The Double Third Festival () sometimes also called the Washing Festival is a traditional holiday originating from China, and is celebrated in multiple East Asian countries, including China and Korea. China The Double Third Festival () or Sha ...

, a spring festival. It is also used in infused liquor.

Gallery

File:Korean pancake-Jindallae hwajeon-03.jpg, ''Jindallae-

'' (pan-fried rhododendron flower cake) File:Bog bilberry liquor and Korean rhododendron liquor.jpg, ''Deuljjuk- sul'' ( bog bilberry liquor) and ''jindallae-sul'' (Korean rhododendron liquor) produced in

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

File:Rhododendron mucronalatum Koreanatsalea IM7364 C.JPG, Helsinki University Botanical Garden File:Korea-Mount Biseul-Azalea Valley-01.jpg, Azalea Valley, Mt. Biseul, Korea

References

* "''Rhododendron mucronulatum''", Turczaninow, ''Bull. Soc. Imp. Naturalistes Moscou''. 10(7): 155. 1837.
Plants of the World Online
{{Taxonbar, from=Q73315 mucronulatum Flora of Eastern Asia Flora of China Flora of Mongolia Flora of Russia Flora of Japan Taxa named by Nikolai Turczaninow