The name Rhododendron comes from the Greek words “rodon” which means “rose” and “dendron” which means “tree”, hence Rose Tree.
There may be no better example of a “Rhododendron Tree” in Laurelwood Arboretum than R. ‘Babylon’ located on Long Valley Road. It was hybridized in 1955 by G. Reuthe, Ltd. in Kent, England. The new hybrid was imported from England by John and Dorothy Knippenberg as part of their efforts to assemble masses of the hardiest varieties of rhododendrons in the arboretum. Now over fifteen feet in height, its large openly funnel-shaped flowers are 4” to 5” across with a deep red blotch in its throat. Both its seed parent (calophytum) and pollen parent (praevemum) from China had large crimson or deep red blotches in their throats and a tree-like grow habit.
It still grows in the arboretum today. Two smaller examples of ‘Babylon’ are located on the downhill side of Ridge Road and a medium tree-like ‘Babylon’ is located on Brook Road. Its usual bloom time in Laurelwood is April depending on weather conditions.
