LUCULIA. Himalayas and Southwest China. Beautiful, unfortunately rather touchy shrubs and small trees of the madder/gardenia family. They have deeply veined, shiny leaves of variable width, deep green and sometimes tinged with red above, paler beneath. Umbrella-like clusters of tubular pink to white blossoms with flat, open faces–resembling those of some rhododendrons—are borne at the shoot tips in summer and fall. The flowers are often delightfully fragrant. L. gratissima is treelike, growing 10-20' tall. It has striking broad leaves up to 8" long, and large clusters of light pink flowers, each about 1" across at the face. L. pinceana is similar but usually under 8' high and bushy. It has broadly lance shaped leaves and wide petalled flowers, also light pink, up to 2" across. Both grow well near the coast, where they are essentially evergreen (though various texts describe them as deciduous), but do not tolerate sustained summer heat. They thrive in sun or light shade, in well drained, acid soil, being never allowed to dry out. Their hardiness is uncertain; assume 15-20^o, to be safe.