Yes, this is surely Rhododendron arboreum, which as you know is 'Lali Gurans' the National Flower of Nepal. The only Rhododendron recorded in 'Flora of Kathmandu Valley'. Apparently the young leaves are poisonous (which would help explain its success in heavily-grazed places) and applied to forehead for headache. Flowers are known to be edible in Nepal and Indian Himalaya.
Flower colour recorded as deep scarlet to pinkish-white in Kathmandu Valley. The most widely distributed tree-rhododendron in the Himalaya found over a wide range of altitudes (1500-3600m) and in many different forms, some of which have been described as separate species. Flowers presented as offerings in hill temples. On Sunday, December 11, 2016 at 4:39:29 PM UTC, Saroj Kumar Kasaju wrote: > Dear Members, > > Location: Kakani , Nepal > Altitude: 6000 ft. > Date: 2 March 2013 > > Thank you. > > Saroj Kasaju > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "efloraofindia" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
