Lapland Rosebay

This is the third flower from our third day of the trip that I want to go more in depth about. This is a beautiful purple flower which we identified on the West Kennicott Glacier Trail.

Lapland Rosebay- Rhododendron lapponicum

Family: Heath/Ericaceae
Blooming Time: Late May to mid-June
Habitat: Woods, moist depressions, and alpine slopes in Interior Alaska
Description: An evergreen shrub, 6-18" tall with small oval, hard, dark green leaves with rusty undersides, similar to Labrador Tea but leaves appear to be arranged in whorls at the ends of the stems. The 5-petaled, 5/8" open funnel-shaped, magenta flowers bloom in dense clusters at the end of the branches.