Species diversity and distribution of the genus Rhododendron in Tangjiahe area of the giant panda national park

Through field investigations and data collections on Rhododendron species in the Tangjiahe area of Sichuan giant panda national park, it was found that the area contains 2 subgenera, 3 sections, and 10 subsections within Rhododendron, including 16 species, 1 subspecies, and 1 variety, 18 taxa in total. The Rhododendron species are primarily distributed in mid-mountain to subalpine areas at elevations of 2, 000–3, 000 m, with the numbers showing an initial increase followed by a decrease as the elevation rises. The Rhododendron plants are widely distributed in the area, exhibiting high ecological and landscape application value. Some species can be served as parent materials for breeding new cultivars, such as Rhododendron hunnewellianum, R. calophytum, R. oreodoxa, R. maculiferum and R. augustinii. In addition to preserve Rhododendron plant resources in the area, it is necessary to carry out exploiting and breeding new cultivars.