Agapetes

This blueberry relative was an exciting find from a small mostly deforested limestone ridge in Vietnam. It was a small compact 12"-18" shrub growing both in the rocks and epiphytically with orchids on the few trees left. Evergreen with boss white tubular flowers and a red berry sheltered by 3 large red bracts. Edible. This will get larger with longer stems when growing in cushy cultivation.

Attractive cousin to blueberries growing in the trees of Thailand's northern mountains. Sometimes seen offered as a hybrid clone 'Red Elf', this is typical hosseana which is a small evergreen shrub with dark red flowers that can take light frost. The fruit is edible and would be nice sprinkled on Thai Beef Salad, Phla Nuea.

Agapetes is an epiphytic Blueberry relative which lives in trees and develops a woody bulbous base called a lignotuber. This is a cross between A. serpens and A. rugosa which has beautiful pendant light pink flowers with darker pink chevrons. Tender here, easy inside over winter.

This epiphytic Vaccinium relative - indeed some have merged the two genera - is a stunner. Growing on trees in the cloud forests of the Himalaya, this forms woody lignotubers from which arise the branches clad in evergreen leaves which hold the narrow pendant yellow flowers in late winter and spring. This is an especially good form with red calyces. Tolerant of light frost and needs very good drainage. Our overwintering hummingbirds love this in our greenhouse.

This flamboyant Blueberry relative is almost hardy in our area but is an easy and dramatic attention-getter in a pot. We keep ours in the cool greenhouse over winter or if you are annoyingly mild like West Seattle, just bring in during the rare hard freeze. The 1" red tubular flowers marked in distinctive pale chevrons are favored by our resident hummingbirds and we all snack on the lightly sweet pale lavender fruit. This is an epiphytic species from the foothills of the Himalaya with arching pendulous stems clad in small evergreen leaves. We sold our nearly 30 year old stock plant as there are offers that you can't refuse but we still pine and wonder how our priorities became so skewed. But we took cuttings and so on it goes.

Epiphytic blueberry relative with some of the coolest flowers you will ever see, dark red checkered tubes that are a favorite of hummingbirds. The flowers are a rich blood red and especially voluminous and open in this Steve Hootman selection. Does well in hanging baskets as it produces many arching stems of small evergreen leaves that prefer winter warmth in most temperate areas.

This species is one of the easiest to grow and in the wilds of the Himalaya would be found as an epiphyte hanging out on the mossy trunks and branch crotches in essentially cloud forest conditions. In its typical expression, this sports red flowers but in this unusual variant, the flowers are creamy white followed by edible pale lavender fruit and its alliance with Vaccinium (blueberries) is easy to see. Eventually this will form a rounded woody caudex above ground called a lignotuber which is a food and water storage adaptation to coping with the vagaries of life in the canopy. Very easy to grow and will tolerate short exposure to light frost, but best no colder than zone 9.

As Cousin Itt is to the Addams family Agapetes malipoensis is to the Agapetes genus, a freak even among freaks. In a genus full of mind boggling fruits and flowers the slender yellow-white tubes covered in white fuzz put out by these fellas is sure to delight those that find charisma in cretinous things with inexplicably devoted fanbases. Our collection from mountainous North Vietnam as yet untrialled for hardiness though the species has been grown outside at the Rhody garden.

Stunning introduction by the equally stunning Steve Hootman from the rich forests of the Myanmar border area. This epiphytic blueberry cousin has luscious pink, tubular, ribbed flowers accented by red squiggly chevrons with provocatively inviting, recurved yellow tips ringing the corolla mouth. Likely tolerates light brief frosts.