1. The Rhododendron Museum

Plant breeders and gardeners alike have always sought out the new and improved. Individual cultivars document as much a cultural as a botanical history, but they tend to go out of fashion and be lost. One example is the original pure-white flowered ‘Cunningham’s White’, which was first sold in Norway from the nursery of Gerhard Stoltz in Sandviken from around 1880. We obtained original material both from the gardens of Stoltz’s grandson Knut Fægri, and from those of Mrs. von Erpecom, and are conserving it for posterity here. Another example is ‘Multimaculatum’, bred before 1850, that was discovered in a derelict garden in Sunnmøre, originally planted by one of the salmon lords about 100 years ago. This is now scarce even in England, where it originated and was once very popular.

We have assembled a representative collection of old British cultivars, and have also acquired the old French, dark-violet flowering ‘Marcel Ménard’. This regained popularity because of its unusually dark flower colour and hardiness. We also maintain some of the old German cultivars that were outcompeted by modern introductions but nevertheless show great hardiness and flower richly.

Also in the collection: 'Alfred', 'Chionoides', 'Christmas Cheer', 'Cunningham's Blush', 'Cynthia', 'Daphnoides', 'Effner', 'Gomer Waterer', 'Helene Schiffner', 'Herkules', 'Lady Anette de Trafford', 'Marcel Ménard', 'Moser's Maroon', 'Nobleanum', 'Nobleanum White', 'Pink Pearl', 'Purple Splendour', 'Sir Thomas Sebright', R. praevernum and R. ponticum 'Variegatum'.

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