Investigation of old Edo [Jpana]-kirishima azalea [Rhododendron] specimens in the Noto district, Ishikawa [Japan] Prefecture

There are 286 Edo-kirishima azalea specimens, estimated to be over 100 years old, in private gardens in the northern part of the Noto district, in Ishikawa Prefecture. These azaleas are called 'Noto-kirishimatsutsuji' in Noto and used to attract tourism as a source of revitalization for the area. Such a large number of old Edo-kirishima plants distributed over a wide area is unknown in other parts of Japan. According to the literature of the Edo era, a representative cultivar of the Edo-kirishima azalea group, 'Hon-kirishima', existed in Noto before 1738 and was introduced from the Edo and Kansai districts. Based on our morphological studies, Edo-kirishima azaleas in Noto consisted of 7 cultivars of 'Hon-kirishima', 'Mino-kirishima', 'Nijun-kirishima', 'Yae-kirishima', 'Shikizaki-kirishima', 'Beni-kirishima', and 'Murasaki-kirishima' as well as 3 unidentified strains of single, semi-hose in hose, and hose-in-hose flowers of 'Kera-sho'. The results of RAPD analyses of 'Hon-kirishima' demonstrated that they have the same band patterns among Noto but the clones differ from those found in Noto and Tsutsujigaoka Park in Tatebayashi, Gunma Prefecture.