Home Theaceae Camellia (camellias)

Saiho-ji Konda,Sasayama 3550

Leaves:

  • alternate
  • simple
  • usually serrate
  • leathery
  • no stipules

Gardenology.org-IMG 2291 rbgs11jan

Flowers:

  • solitary or few clustered in leaf axils
  • usually sessile (no pedicel)
  • perfect
  • radial
  • large and showy
  • white, pink, or red
  • bracts and sepals fall away as flowers open
  • 5 sepals
  • 5-merous petals (or multiples)
  • many stamens, fused at base and to petals

Camellia sasanqua1

Fruit:

  • capsule

Other notes:

  • trees to 45 feet or shrubs
  • evergreen
  • over 2,000 cultivars (Dirr [1998] states that the situation is confused “to the point of hopelessness”)
  • C. sinensis is the source of tea
  • C. sasanqua is an early bloomer
  • C. japonica has blossom rot in PNW climate
  • C. Xwilliamsii is better suited (cross of C. saluenensis x C. japonica produced by JC Williams in the early 1930s)
  • Camellia refers to Georg Joseph Camel (1661-1706), a German Jesuit missionary to the Philippines who was noted for his work on plants in the Eastern hemisphere
  • Alabama’s state flower

Ecology & Adaptations:

  • example in the WA Arboretum: Camellia sasanqua
    • native to Japan where it is found in forest clearings and on grassy slopes on mountainsides
  • drought tolerant:
    • leathery leaves retain water
    • thick canopy of leaves shades and cools roots
  • shade tolerant:
    • in shady conditions, leaves are thinner, which provides light capturing surface area but limits the total investment in photosynthesizing structures
    • stomata are not as dense as is found on leaves in full sun, since water regulation is not as important
  • pollination by birds and bees
  • herbivory defense – leathery leaves protect against insect herbivory
  • microbial infection defense – protected by numerous compounds, including flavonoids