Rhododendron 'Unelma'

'Unelma' is a dense round shrub with beautiful dark foliage and large, intensely rose-red flowers. It has the same parents as ‘Hellikki’, both being offspring of an open pollinated red flowering Seidel Group hybrid growing at Mustila. The foliage indicates the strong influence of the Smirnow Rhododendron (R. smirnowii). ‘Unelma’ has soft down on its new growth and the leaf undersides are covered with a felt-like pale brownish indumentum.

'Unelma' has flowers a little larger than its sister hybrid ’Hellikki’. Marjatta Uosukainen, who was responsible for breeding the hybrids, suggests that ‘Unelma’ might be the less demanding of the two with regard to growing site.