?Rhododendron albicaule H. Léveillé.

Shrubs or small trees, 3–12 m tall; bark gray, falling off in flakes; young shoots green, glandular, glabrescent. Petiole cylindric, 18–40 mm, sparsely glandular-hairy when young; leaf blade thickly leathery, oblong to oblong-elliptic, 8–14.5 × 3–9.2 cm; base rounded or truncate, rarely cordulate; apex obtuse to rounded, rarely acute; abaxial surface pale green, glabrous except for persistent punctulate hair bases; adaxial surface dark green, shiny; midrib prominent abaxially, grooved adaxially; lateral veins 14–16, flat abaxially, impressed adaxially. Inflorescence lax, 6–12-flowered; rachis 30–50 mm, glandular. Pedicel 2–3 cm, glandular-hairy; calyx lobes 7, ca. 1 mm, glandular and gland-fringed; corolla funnel-campanulate, fragrant, pink, 4.5–5.2 cm, outer surface glandular; lobes 7, obovate, 1.5–1.8 cm; apex undulate; stamens 14, unequal, 1.8–3 cm, filaments glabrous; ovary conoid, ca. 5 × 4.5 mm, densely glandular; style ca. 3 cm, glandular-hairy; stigma small. Capsule oblong, rough, 25–35 × 6–10 mm. Fl. Apr–May, fr. Aug–Oct.

The type of Rhododendron albicaule (described from Zhejiang) is too poor to be certain of its identity, but it is probably referable to R. fortunei.

Forests; 600–2000 m. Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Shaanxi, Sichuan, NE Yunnan, Zhejiang.