Christmas Cheer Rhododendron

Did we put up the wrong picture? Were you expecting a plant called the Christmas Cheer Rhododendron to be red? No, it’s a beautiful, warm and delicious pink, with large flower trusses. Does it flower at Christmas? Well, no. . . .What you do get is worth almost as much, though. This plant is one of the hardiest of all rhododendrons, thriving for many throughout zone 5, even in the coldest pockets. That’s a big plus – but wait, there is more. It is also incredibly early to bloom, one of the very first of all the large-flowering rhododendrons to put on a show. Reports abound of it blooming while there is snow on the ground!! So if you live in zone 5, and love rhododendrons, then this is a must-have plant. It’s the same for warmer zones, because there it is going to launch the rhododendron season in your garden with an early bang. It’s a broad, spreading bush, reaching about 4 feet tall and 5 feet wide within 10 years, and then of course growing larger and larger indefinitely at 4-5 inches a year. The 2-inch diameter flowers are in trusses of about 15 at the end of each stem, and it makes a gorgeous display. 

Now, if you are still disappointed that it doesn’t actually bloom at Christmas, here is a suggestion. Grow it outdoors in a large, well-drained pot – rhododendrons take well to growing in pots. In late October, after at least 8 weeks of colder outdoor weather, bring it into a cool, bright place, like a glass porch, or even a cool, well-lit room indoors, and put it under a bright light for 12 hours a day. This will make it bloom much earlier than outdoors, and with a bit of trial-and-error you have a good chance of making that Christmas dream come true – a rhododendron in bloom for the holiday season!!!

Growing the Christmas Cheer Rhododendron

Size and Appearance

The Christmas Cheer Rhododendron is a broad, evergreen shrub with dense foliage. Within 10 years, in reasonable growing conditions, it will probably be 4 feet tall and 5 feet wide. It will grow taller more slowly than it grows wide, so allow plenty of room for that when planting (fill the space around with low perennials, for example). The leaves are classic – long but broad smooth ovals, around 3 inches long, with a smooth, leathery, and a dark-green coloring. It grows densely, making a solid, bushy plant with plenty of impact as a lovely evergreen, even when not in bloom.

The blooms are carried in trusses of 12 to as many as 15, upright at the ends of each branch. You will see the fat bud developing over the fall and winter months. The flowers are open funnels with frilly edges to the 5 petals making the funnel, and 2 inches across. The buds are pink. They open a bright light pink, with lots of white behind it to make the color really sing. As they mature they become very pale pink. The result is a truss of varying colors, light pink in the older blooms around the base, darker pink in the new upper flower and unopened buds – it’s a lovely sight of both delicacy and strength.

Flowering is very, very early, usually in April, and in favored warm districts, March. This is the big bonus to the Christmas Cheer Rhododendron, the wonderful early blooming, kicking off the season, and even blooming with a late snow fall still on the ground!!

Using the Christmas Cheer Rhododendron in Your Garden

This beautiful shrub is ideal anywhere in your garden, from beds around your home in the foundation planting, to natural woodland settings. With higher drought and sun tolerance than many other varieties of these plants, don’t hesitate to plant it in a brighter spot, with full sun into the early afternoon.
Of course, you can also do as mentioned earlier – grow it for Christmas, with the hope of blooming it in the holidays. Plant it in a good-sized but not too big pot, about 3 inches wider all around than the one it arrived in. Make sure the pot has a drainage hole, and don’t leave it standing in a saucer of water. Use soil blended specially for acid-loving plants, such as azalea or camellia soil. Grow it outdoors in a spot shaded from afternoon sun, and feed regularly from spring to early fall with liquid food for azaleas, as directed on the packet. Let it stay outside for at least 8 weeks of cold nights (below 45 degrees) and then bring it into a bright, cool place, with a strong lamp directly overhead for 12 hours a day. After it blooms, keep it indoors – you can turn off the light – until the last frost has gone, or keep it outside from March on, bringing it inside on freezing nights. That won’t be necessary if you live in zones 7 or 8.

Hardiness

The Christmas Cheer Rhododendron grows happily in zone 5, and in all warmer zones except for hot parts of zone 9. It grows best in regions with cooler summers and some summer rain.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

The ideal location for your Christmas Cheer Rhododendron is in morning sun with afternoon shade, or in light broken shade beneath deciduous trees. Too much shade will reduce blooming. 

The soil should be acidic, no more than pH 6.5, and preferably 5.5. It should be moist but well-drained, with lots of acid-free organic additives, like rotted leaves, pine needles and peat moss. This variety is more resistant to dryness (but only when well-established) than many others, and can be thought of as marginally drought tolerant – a great bonus in areas with hot summers.

Maintenance and Pruning

In the right spot, the Christmas Cheer Rhododendron is easy to grow. Deer don’t worry about it, rabbits leave it alone, and pests are rare, especially when grown with some sun. Diseases usually indicate poor drainage. The only ‘job’ is an annual dead-heading, especially on younger plants. When the last blooms have fallen, reach to the bottom of the flower truss, just above the leaves. Pinch or snap it off, being careful not to damage the older leaves or the young shoots you will probably see developing just above those older leaves, between the truss and the foliage. 

No other pruning is needed, beyond removing the very occasional small dead twig. Never trim or prune, just let your bush grow naturally, or flowering will be reduced.

History and Origin of the Christmas Cheer Rhododendron

 There have been many famous names in the story of the discovery of new rhododendrons. One important one, not so well known, was the companion of the much more famous Reginald Farrer on his last trip to China in 1919. His name was Euan Hillhouse Methven Cox, and he was Scottish. He had a garden in Glendoick, Perthshire, Scotland, where he grew and bred many rhododendrons. When he was older his son Peter turned the garden into a famous nursery called T. Methven & Sons. With the cold, unreliable Scottish climate to deal with, the nursery specialized in hardy, cold-resistant varieties – one of which was called ‘Christmas Cheer’, which became one of their most famous creations. 

We don’t know much about how ‘Christmas Cheer’ was created, or even exactly when it was released. It is a hybrid plant, and one parent is unknown. We do know that the other was Rhododendron caucasicum. This interesting species was actually introduced into England by Cox and some other collectors in 1962, so he had to have bred ‘Christmas Cheer’ from those plants, no earlier than the 1970s. R. caucasicum is very hardy, growing in the mountains of Georgia and western Turkey, at altitudes as high as 9,000 ft – it needs to be hardy to survive up there! Less than 3 feet tall, it is a slow-growing dense shrub with white flowers, sometimes flushed with a little pink or yellow.

Buying the Christmas Cheer Rhododendron at the Tree Center

So if you live in zone 5, or like to see rhododendrons in your garden as early as possible, then the Christmas Cheer Rhododendron is exactly what you need. It is so popular with so many gardeners that supplies are always hard to come by. Don’t worry, we found a good stock from a specialized grower. But do worry, because these plants are flying off the farm, they are so popular. Order yours now.