Pinxterplant, Home

For the past couple of weeks, I've had my eye on a small, all-too-spare-looking shrub in the woods near the house. This is our representative of the wild azalea clan, and as I wrote in this space last year—May 26th, to be exact—"in the litany of gorgeous spring flowers, Rhododendron periclymenoides is certainly at the top of any 10 Best list." One common name for the plant is Pinxter Flower, and I always figured this came from its color, which, though my red-green colorblind eyes can't see it, I have on good authority and my Photoshop read-outs is gloriously pink. When I actually did some research—fancy that—I learned that the appellation comes from the Dutch moniker, Pinxter blomachee, a name that translates, more or less, to "blooming on the Pentecost," the seventh Sunday after Easter. This timing wouldn't have worked in 2016, since Easter was early and that seventh Sunday was a couple of weeks ago, when the Pinxter was barely in bud. But whenever R. periclymenoides starts to flower, a trip to the Pinxter groves is well worth it—to view, delight in, and capture close-up.