Rhododendron Ponticum

Rhododendron Ponticum is extremely resilient to the harsh Scottish climate and has a high tolerance to shaded, low-light conditions.

This, combined with its high fertility, has enabled it to out-compete our native flora and thrive throughout the country. It forms large, dense closed canopies that block out the light for anything else to grow within our woodlands and open land. It’s an aggressive coloniser and a huge threat to biodiversity, with its management a top priority for a number of key organisations in Scotland, such as National Trust Scotland and the Forestry Commission.

A mature Rhododendron Ponticum plant growing in ideal conditions can produce up to one million seeds per year, which remain viable for 12 months.

Even smaller plants are able to produce several thousand seeds each year. Rhododendron Ponticum seeds ripen during December and January and dispersal takes place across February and March. Growth is initially very slow, however this increases significantly over time. As the plant grows, branches are able to graft and take on new roots through stem layering and brach collapse, further enabling spread over longer periods of time, where soil conditions are not conducive to invasion by seedlings.

Rhododendron Ponticum is covered by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

It is listed under Schedule 9 of the Act, which cites that it is an offence to plant or otherwise cause the species to grow in the wild.

In Scotland, it is controlled under the Wildlife and Natural Environment Act 2011, which states that it is an offence to release or cause the release of any plant to a place outside of its native range.