Rhododendron taipaoense T. C. Wu & P. C. Tam

Shrubs, 1–1.5 m tall; branchlets many, densely silky pale gray setose and glandular pubescent. Summer and winter leaves different. Petiole 5–10 mm, indumentum as for branchlets; leaf blade leathery, elliptic, oblong or rarely oblong-elliptic, 2.5–6.5 × 1–3 cm; base cuneate, rarely broadly cuneate; margin conspicuously revolute; apex obtuse or acute; adaxial surface densely coarsely yellow-brown felted strigose, later subglabrous, midrib densely short-setose and appressed-strigose. Inflorescence 7–10-flowered. Pedicel ca. 0.6 cm, densely coarsely ferruginous strigose; calyx lobes small, usually finely crenate and coarsely ferruginous strigose; corolla narrowly funnelform, red, ca. 1.8 cm; tube cylindric, ca. 10 × 2 mm in diam.; lobes oblong-linear, ca. 0.8 × 0.3 cm, apex acute; stamens 5, unequal, 2.6–2.8 cm, filaments glabrous; ovary ovoid, ca. 2 mm, densely strigose; style ca. 2.5 cm, shorter than stamens, glabrous. Capsules ovoid, 3–4 mm, coarsely dark red-brown strigose. Fl. Jun, fr. Aug–Sep.

E Guangdong.

Open submontane forests, thickets; 700–800 m.