Rhododendron 'Mary Fleming'

'Mary Fleming' was named for the Secretary of the American Rhododendron Society New York Chapter, and a close friend of Guy Nearing. It was Mary who found the plant pictured above, (R. racemosum x R. keiskei) x R. keiskei. Guy had given her the small seedling. Mary was one of the initial members of the Tappan Zee Chapter.

Chapter History

Guy Nearing was a pioneer developer of super-hardy small-leaved (lepidote) rhododendrons from the late 1920s into the late 1960s when he became regarded as a premier hybridizer and grower in the East. He operated nurseries in New Jersey, was a founding member of the New York Chapter (1951) and a member of the New Jersey Chapter. He founded the Tappan Zee Chapter as a spin off from the New Jersey Chapter.

Current Tappan Chapter Officers