Pukeiti

Family: Ericaceae (Heath)

Distribution: China (west); Myanmar (north east)

IUCN Red list: Vulnerable

Life form: Tree - evergreen

Comments: Habit: A tall tree - in the wild it's been recorded growing up to 18m tall with a grith of 1.8m. An impressive plant even when not in flower.
Foliage: Dark green leaves with a slight sheen on upper surface. The underside starts off glabrous (hairless) but as the leaves age they become covered with a light tan indumentum. When the plants are young the leaves can reach 50cm long but once the plant ages and starts to flower the leaves no longer grow so large. After flowering, stunningly attractive purple-red leaf bracts peel back to reveal silvery spears of new leaves before the leaves fully open.
Flowers: These are a rich purple-pink or reddish-purple, sometime with a darker centre. They are long lasting on the plant and some fade to lighter pink in the centre as they age. Flowering time in the southern hemisphere is August to September, slightly later than protistum.
History: Found and introduced to the west by Frank Kingdon-Ward in 1931 after finding it in the Adung Long Valley in Myanmar (Burma) at an elevation of about 2000m. One tree was 15m tall, with a diamenter of 1m at head height. It was absolutely stunning with about 1000 flowers so he named it magnificum.
Cultivation: A rare plant in cultivation, in needs shelter from cold and wind and plenty of moisturs and patience.