CAMELLIA 



CAMELLIA 



641 



759. Camellia 



japonica 



Lucida. 



CAMELLIA (after George Joseph Kamel or Camellus, 

 a Moravian Jesuit, who traveled in Asia in the seven- 

 teenth century). Ternstrcemiaceae. CAMELLIA. Woody 

 plants, chiefly grown for their showy white or red 

 flowers and also for their handsome evergreen foliage. 

 Evergreen trees or shrubs with alternate short-peti- 

 oled serrate Ivs. and large terminal or axillary white or 



red fls. followed by 

 subglobose woody 

 caps.: fls. sessile, up- 

 right; sepals many, 

 imbricate, deciduous; 

 petals 5 or more; 

 stamens numerous, 

 more or less connate; 

 ovary 3-5-celled, 

 with slender styles 

 connate, at least be- 



758.- Camellia 



japonica 

 Abby Wilder. 



low: fr. a dehiscent caps., 

 with few large subglobose 

 seeds. About 10 species 

 in tropical and subtropical 

 Asia. Often united with 

 Thea, which differs in its 

 nodding and stalked fls. 

 with a persistent calyx 

 consisting of 5 nearly equal sepals. There is 

 a monograph of this genus by Seemann in 

 Trans. Linn. Soc. 22:337-352 (1859) and by 

 Kochs in Engler Bot. Jahrb. 27:577-634 

 (1900). Illustrated monographs of the horti- 

 cultural varieties are: Curtis, Monogr. of the 

 genus Camellia (1819); Baumann, Bollweiler 

 Camelliensammlung (1828); Chandler, 

 Camelliese (1831); Berlese, Monogr. du genre 

 Camellia a (1839); Verschaffelt, Nouvelle 

 Monographic du Camellia (1848-1860): the 

 last with 576 and the previous one with 300 

 colored plates. 



Camellias grow like natives on sandy lands 

 and even on high pine land in central Florida, 

 but they flower best in half-shady somewhat 

 moist places. The half-double varieties of 

 Camellia japonica do best, while the very 

 double kinds often drop their buds entirely. The flow- 

 ers suffer very much from the sun and cannot be grown 

 much farther south than central Florida. Camellia 

 Sasanqua, single, half-double and double kinds, grow 

 much more satisfactorily than the varieties of C. ja- 

 ponica. They begin to flower late in October and early 

 November, and the double white C. Sasanqua is a 

 mass of pure white usually at Christmas time. All 

 the varieties of C. Sasanqua have somewhat fragrant 

 flowers. C. reticulata does equally well in Florida. It is 

 very distinct in foliage from the two former species 

 which have glossy leaves, while the leaves of C. reticu- 

 lata are dull green. All the camellias are extremely 

 slow growers if not carefully cultivated and fertilized. 

 A mulch of old cow-manure, now and then a little 

 commercial fertilizer, and thorough watering during 

 the dry season several times a week start the bushes 

 into a vigorous and healthy growth. They are so ex- 

 tremely beautiful when in flower that all the care given 

 them is well repaid. (H. Nehrling.) 



A. Ovary and Ivs. perfectly glabrous. 

 japonica, Linn. (Thea japonica, Nois.). Figs. 758- 

 761. Shrub or tree, sometimes to 40 ft., glabrous: Ivs 



very shining and dark green above, ovate or elliptic, 

 acuminate, sharply serrate, 2-4 in. long: fls. red in the 

 type, 3-5 in. across; petals 5-7, roundish. China, 

 Japan. B.M. 42. S.Z. 82. F.S. 20:2121. S.I.F. 1:73. 

 Gn. 24, p. 411; 28, p. 203; 36, p. 241. Var. alba, Lodd. 

 Fls. white. L.B.C. 7:636. Gn. 54, p. 243. J.H. III. 

 54:227; 64:397. Var. alba-plena, Lodd. Fls. white, 

 double. L.B.C. 3:269. Gn. 53, p. 244. Var. anemonifldra, 

 Curtis. Fls. red, with 5 large petals, the stamens 

 changed into numerous smaller and narrow petals; 

 the whole fl. resembling that of a double anemone. 

 L.B.C. 537. B.M. 1654. Gn. 44, p. 329. Var. magno- 

 liaefldra, Hort. Fls. pale rose, semi-double, with 12-15 

 petals rather narrow and half upright. Gn. 76, p. 31. 

 Var. apucaeformis, Rehd. (C. apucseformis, Jacob- 

 Mackoy). Lvs. bifid at the apex. For the numerous 

 other garden forms, see the above-mentioned mono- 

 graphs; also, Flore des Serres, L'lllustration Horticole, 

 and other older horticultural publications contain a 

 large number of varieties with illustrations. 



AA. Ovary and Ivs. on the midrib above pubescent. 

 reticulata, Lindl. (Thea reticulata, Pierre). Large 

 shrub, glabrous: Ivs. dull green, not shining above, 

 reticulate, flat, elliptic-oblong, acuminate, serrate, 3-5 

 in. long: fls. 5-7 in. across, purplish rose; petals 15-20, 

 obovate, loosely arranged. China. B.R. 13:1078. B.M. 

 2784. P.M. 3:101. G.M. 35: suppl. Apr. 2. F.W. 

 1880:321. G. 25:59. Var. plena, Hort. Fls. with twice 

 as many petals, and more regularly arranged. B.M. 



4976. F.S. 12: 

 1279-80. 



Sasanqua, 

 Thunb. (Thea 

 Sasdnqua,Nois.). 

 Shrub of loose, 

 straggling habit, 

 and with the 

 branches pubes- 

 cent when 

 young: Ivs. ellip- 

 tic to oblong- 

 ovate, bluntly 

 pointed at the 

 apex, crenate- 



760. Camellia 



japonica 

 H. A. Downing. 



761. Camellia 



japonica 

 President Clark. 



serrate, shining, 

 dark green ana 

 hairy on the midrib 

 above, 1-2 in. long: 

 fls. lJ^-2 in. across, 

 white; petals 5 or 

 more, obovate or 

 oblong. China, Ja- 

 pan. Gn. 54:142. 

 S.Z. 83 (except the 

 red vars.). S.I.F. 

 2:52. J.H. III. 43: 

 131. G.M. 36:51. 

 Runs into many forms. Var. semi-plena, Hort. Fls. 

 semi-double, white. B.R. 1:12; 13:1091. Var. anemo- 

 niflora, Seem. Fls. large, double, outer petals white, 

 inner ones much smaller, yellow. B.M. 5152. Var. 

 oledsa, Rehd. (Thea Sasdnqua var. oleosa, Pierre. C. 

 oleifera, Lindl.). Of more robust habit, with Ivs. and 

 the single white fls. larger than in the type. B.R. 11: 

 942. L.B.C. 11:1065. Var. Kissi, Rehd. (Thea Sasdn- 

 quav&r. Kissi, Pierre. C. Kissi, Wall.). Lvs. oval-oblong 

 to ovate, long-acuminate, to 3J^ in- long. Himalayas. 



