Jump to content

Camellia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see Camellia (disambiguation).

Camellia
Camellia sasanqua is used as a garden plant; its leaves are used for tea, and its seeds for oil.
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Theaceae
Genus: Camellia
L.
Type species
Camellia japonica L.[1]
Species

About 187, see text

Synonyms[2]
List
  • Tsubaki Adans.
  • Sasanqua Nees
  • Calpandria Blume
  • Camelliastrum Nakai
  • Dankia Gagnep.
  • Desmitus Raf.
  • Drupifera Raf.
  • Piquetia Hallier f.
  • Salceda Blanco
  • Stereocarpus Hallier f.
  • Thea L.
  • Theaphylla Raf.
  • Theopsis (Cohen-Stuart) Nakai
  • Tsia Adans.
  • Yunnanea Hu

Camellia (pronounced /kə.ˈmɛ.li.ə/[3] or /kə.ˈmiː.li.ə/[4]) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae.[2] They are found in tropical and subtropical areas in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are more than 220 described species;[2] almost all are found in southern China and Indochina.[5]: 66  Camellias are popular ornamental, tea, and woody-oil plants cultivated worldwide for centuries. Over 26,000 cultivars, with more than 51,000 cultivar names, including synonyms, have been registered or published.[6][7]

The leaves of C. sinensis are processed to create tea, and so are of particular economic importance in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent, with the processed leaves widely sold and consumed globally. The ornamental C. japonica, C. sasanqua and their hybrids are the source of hundreds of garden cultivars. C. oleifera produces tea seed oil, used in cooking and cosmetics.

Description

[edit]
Flowering Camellia × intermedia

Vegetative characteristics

[edit]
A small Camellia petelotii tree growing in Huisun, Taiwan
Leaf of Camellia reticulata
Bark of Camellia sasanqua
Wood cross section of Camellia japonica

Camellia are attractive, broad-leaved,[8] evergreen,[9][10] up to 10–15 m tall[11] shrubs, small trees, or rarely large trees.[9][10] The alternate, leathery leaves with serrate or rarely entire margins[12] are petiolate or rarely sessile or amplexicaul.[9][12]

Flowers and fruit

[edit]
Flower of Camellia rosiflora
Capsule fruit and seeds of Camellia sinensis

The axillary or subterminal, solitary or grouped, large, hermaphrodite,[12] fragrant or inodorous flowers[13] are pedicellate or subsessile.[9][12] Their flowers are usually conspicuous, one to 12 cm (5 in) in diameter, with five to nine petals in naturally occurring species of camellias. The colors of the flowers vary from white through pink colors to red; truly yellow flowers are found only in South China and Vietnam. Tea varieties are always white-flowered. Camellia flowers throughout the genus are characterized by a dense bouquet of conspicuous yellow stamens, often contrasting with the petal colors.[14][page needed][15] Some research has shown that the colour of petals in some species' flowers indicate their size and how they are pollinated; species with red or yellow flowers are pollinated by sunbirds whereas species with white flowers are smaller in diameter and are pollinated by bees.[16]: 3–4  The woody,[17] 1-5-locular,[18] globose or oblate, loculicidal capsule fruit[9] with a persistent central axis[17] bears semiglobose, globose, or polygonal,[9] exalbuminous seeds.[17]

Taxonomy

[edit]

The genus Camellia L. was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753.[19][1] It was named by Linnaeus after the Jesuit botanist Georg Joseph Kamel, who worked in the Philippines and described one of its species (although Linnaeus did not refer to Kamel's account when discussing the genus).[20]: 246, 255  The type species is Camellia japonica L.[1] In 2022 the genus was separated into 7 sections based on phylogenetic study on 161 species.[21] Further studies demonstrated that section Oleifera and Paracamellia should be merged into section Paracamellia.[22] The following sections are currently recognized:[citation needed]

Species

[edit]

Plants of the World Online currently includes:[2]

Fossil record

[edit]

The earliest fossil record of Camellia are the leaves of †C. abensis from the upper Eocene of Japan, †C. abchasica from the lower Oligocene of Bulgaria and †C. multiforma from the lower Oligocene of Washington, United States.[23]

Distribution and habitat

[edit]

Species of Camellia occur in the moist or dry, temperate to tropical forests[11] of Bangladesh,[2] Bhutan,[9] Borneo, Cambodia, China, East Himalaya, Hainan,[2] India,[9] Japan, Korea, Laos, Lesser Sunda Is., Myanmar, Nansei-shoto, Nepal, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Taiwan, Thailand, Tibet, and Vietnam[2] at elevations of 0–3200 m above sea level.[11] In deforested areas, Camellia may persist as shrubs in meadows and pastures.[11]

Ecology

[edit]

Camellia plants are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species. Leaves of Camellia japonica are susceptible to the fungal parasite Mycelia sterile (see below for the significance), mycelia sterile PF1022 produces a metabolite named PF1022A that is used to produce emodepside, an anthelmintic drug.[24]

Conservation

[edit]
Camellia amplexicaulis is extinct in the wild.[25]

There are many Camellia species that are threatened with extinction.[26] One species, Camellia amplexicaulis, is already extinct in the wild.[25][26] There are also many critically endangered (CR), endangered (EN), or vulnerable (VU) species and many threatened Camellia species are not present in ex situ conservation collections.[26]

Cultivation

[edit]
Seedling of Camellia sinensis

The various species of Camellia plants are generally well-adapted to acid soils rich in humus, and most species do not grow well on chalky soil or other calcium-rich soils. Most species of camellias also require a large amount of water, either from natural rainfall or from irrigation, and the plants will not tolerate droughts. However, some of the more unusual camellias – typically species from karst soils in Vietnam – can grow without too much water.

Camellia plants are generally considered slow growing. This slow growth rate makes them well-suited for growing in pots or tubs, and they don't require frequent pruning. While some varieties may grow more quickly than others, particularly when young, the overall growth rate of most camellias is relatively slow. Typically, they will grow about 30 cm (12 in) per year until mature – however, this varies depending on their variety and geographical location.

History and use

[edit]
Camellia reticulata is rare in the wild but has been cultivated for hundreds of years.

Camellia sinensis, the tea plant, is of major commercial importance because tea is made from its leaves. The species C. sinensis is the product of many generations of selective breeding to bring out desirable qualities for tea. However, many other camellias can be used to produce a similar beverage. For example, tea made from C. sasanqua leaves is popular in some parts of Japan.

Seeds of C. oleifera, C. japonica, and, to a lesser extent, other species such as C. crapnelliana, C. reticulata, C. sasanqua and C. sinensis as well are pressed to make tea seed oil, a sweet seasoning and cooking oil special to East Asia. It is the most important cooking oil for hundreds of millions of people, particularly in southern China.

Camellia oil is commonly used to clean and protect the blades of cutting instruments.

Camellia oil pressed from seeds of C. japonica, also called tsubaki oil or tsubaki-abura (椿油) in Japanese, has been traditionally used in Japan for hair care.[27] C. japonica plant is used to prepare traditional anti-inflammatory medicines.[28]

Garden history

[edit]

Camellias were cultivated in the gardens of China for centuries before they were seen in Europe. The German botanist Engelbert Kaempfer reported[29] that the "Japan Rose", as he called it, grew wild in woodland and hedgerow, but that many superior varieties had been selected for gardens. Europeans' earliest views of camellias must have been their representations in Chinese painted wallpapers, where they were often represented growing in porcelain pots.

The first living camellias seen in England were a single red and a single white, grown and flowered in his garden at Thorndon Hall, Essex, by Robert James, Lord Petre, among the keenest gardeners of his generation, in 1739. His gardener James Gordon was the first to introduce camellias to commerce, from the nurseries he established after Lord Petre's untimely death in 1743, at Mile End, Essex, near London.[30][full citation needed]

With the expansion of the tea trade in the later 18th century, new varieties began to be seen in England, imported through the British East India Company. The company's John Slater was responsible for the first of the new camellias, double ones, in white and a striped red, imported in 1792. Further camellias imported in the East Indiamen were associated with the patrons whose gardeners grew them: a double red for Sir Robert Preston in 1794 and the pale pink named "Lady Hume's Blush" for Amelia, the lady of Sir Abraham Hume of Wormleybury, Hertfordshire (1806). The camellia was imported from England to America in 1797 when Colonel John Stevens brought the flower as part of an effort to grow attractions within Elysian Fields in Hoboken, New Jersey.[31] By 1819, twenty-five camellias had bloomed in England; that year the first monograph appeared, Samuel Curtis's, A Monograph on the Genus Camellia, whose five handsome folio colored illustrations have usually been removed from the slender text and framed. Though they did not flower for over a decade, camellias that set seed rewarded their growers with a wealth of new varieties. By the 1840s, the camellia was at the height of its fashion as the luxury flower. The Parisian courtesan Marie Duplessis, who died young in 1847, inspired Dumas' La Dame aux camélias and Verdi's La Traviata.

The fashionable imbricated formality of prized camellias was an element in their decline, replaced by the new hothouse orchid. Their revival after World War I as woodland shrubs for mild climates has been paralleled by the rise in popularity of Camellia sasanqua.

Modern cultivars

[edit]

The tea camellia, C. sinensis, has been selected by many commercial cultivars for the taste of its leaves once processed into tea leaves.

Today, camellias are grown as ornamental plants for their flowers; about 3,000 cultivars and hybrids have been selected, many with double or semi-double flowers. C. japonica is the most prominent species in cultivation, with over 2,000 named cultivars. Next are C. reticulata with over 400 named cultivars, and C. sasanqua with over 300 named cultivars. Popular hybrids include C. × hiemalis (C. japonica × C. sasanqua) and C. × williamsii (C. japonica × C. saluenensis). Some varieties can grow considerably, up to 100 m2, though more compact cultivars are available. They are frequently planted in woodland settings alongside other calcifuges, such as rhododendrons. They are particularly associated with areas of high soil acidity, such as Cornwall and Devon in the UK. They are highly valued for their very early flowering, often among the first flowers to appear in the late winter. Late frosts can damage the flower buds, resulting in misshapen flowers.[32]

There is a great variety of flower forms:

  • single (flat, bowl- or cup-shaped)
  • semi-double (rows of large outer petals, with the centre comprising mixed petals and stamens)
  • double:
    • peony form (convex mass of irregular petals and petaloids with hidden stamens)
    • anemone form (one or more rows of outer petals, with mixed petaloids and stamens in the centre)
    • rose form (overlapping petals showing stamens in a concave centre when open)
    • formal double (rows of overlapping petals with hidden stamens)

AGM cultivars

[edit]
Main article: List of Award of Garden Merit camellias

The following hybrid cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit:

Name Parentage Height Spread Flower colour Flower type Ref.
Cornish Snow cuspidata × saluenensis 2.5 1.5 white single [33]
Cornish Spring cuspidata × japonica 2.5 1.5 pink single [34]
Francie L 8.0 8.0 rose-pink double [35]
Freedom Bell × williamsii 2.5 2.5 red semi-double [36]
Inspiration reticulata × saluenensis 4.0 2.5 rose-pink semi-double [37]
Leonard Messel reticulata × × williamsii 4.0 4.0 rose-pink semi-double [38]
Royalty japonica × reticulata 1.0 1.0 light red semi-double [39]
Spring Festival × williamsii, cuspidata 4.0 2.5 pink semi-double [40]
Tom Knudsen japonica × reticulata 2.5 2.5 deep red double paeony [41]
Tristrem Carlyon reticulata 4.0 2.5 rose pink double paeony [42]
  • Simple-flowered Camellia × williamsii 'Brigadoon'
    Simple-flowered Camellia × williamsii 'Brigadoon'
  • Semi-double-flowered Camellia cultivar
    Semi-double-flowered Camellia cultivar
  • Double-flowered Camellia cultivar
    Double-flowered Camellia cultivar
  • Double-flowered hybrid Camellia 'Jury's Yellow'
    Double-flowered hybrid Camellia 'Jury's Yellow'

Cultural significance

[edit]
Portrait of a New Zealand suffragette, c. 1880. The sitter wears a white camellia, symbolic of support for advancing women's rights.

The Camellia family of plants in popular culture.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Camellia L." Tropicos. Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved 2026-02-27.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Camellia L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  3. ^ "camellia". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  4. ^ "camellia". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. OCLC 1032680871.
  5. ^ Hsuan Keng (March 1990). "The Genus Camellia (Theaceae) in Malesia" (PDF). Gardens' Bulletin Singapore. 4 (4): 65–69.
  6. ^ Wang, Yanan; Zhuang, Huifu; Shen, Yunguang; Wang, Yuhua; Wang, Zhonglang (2021-01-19). "The Dataset of Camellia Cultivars Names in the World". Biodiversity Data Journal. 9 e61646. doi:10.3897/BDJ.9.e61646. ISSN 1314-2828. PMC 7838149. PMID 33519266.
  7. ^ "International Camellia Register-Camellia, Cultivars, Species, Photos". camellia.iflora.cn. Retrieved 2023-02-11.
  8. ^ Carter, K. (n.d.). Camellias. University of California Cooperative Extension Central Coast & South Region Center for Landscape and Urban Horticulture.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h "Camellia in Flora of China @ efloras.org". eFloras.org Home. Retrieved 2026-02-27.
  10. ^ a b Russell L. Barrett. Camellia, in Phillip G. Kodela (ed.), Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. https://profiles.ala.org.au/opus/foa/profile/Camellia [Date Accessed: 28 February 2026]
  11. ^ a b c d Parks, C. (n.d.). Camellia species. American Camellia Society. Retrieved February 28, 2026, from https://www.americancamellias.com/education-and-camellia-care/the-camellia-family/camellia-species
  12. ^ a b c d "Camellia L." Trees and Shrubs Online. 2026-02-27. Retrieved 2026-02-27.
  13. ^ Savige, T. (1975). The Search for SCENTED Camellias. The International Camellia Journal, 7.
  14. ^ Mair, Victor H.; Hoh, Erling (2009). The True History of Tea. Thames & Hudson. ISBN 978-0-500-25146-1.
  15. ^ The International Camellia Society. Flowers of Camellias.
  16. ^ Abe, Harue; Miura, Hiroki; Katayama, Rui (2023). "A Comprehensive Comparison of Flower Morphology in the Genus Camellia, with a Focus on the Section Camellia" (PDF). Journal of Integrated Field Science. 20. Field Science Center, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Tohoku University: 2–9.
  17. ^ a b c Flora of India: Portulacaceae-Ixonanthaceae. p. 153. (1993). India: Botanical Survey of India.
  18. ^ Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2026). Flora of Mozambique: Cultivated plants: genus page: Camellia. https://www.mozambiqueflora.com/cult/genus.php?genus_id=959, retrieved 28 February 2026
  19. ^ Linné, Carl von, Salvius, Lars (1753). Caroli Linnaei ... Species plantarum :exhibentes plantas rite cognitas, ad genera relatas, cum differentiis specificis, nominibus trivialibus, synonymis selectis, locis natalibus, secundum systema sexuale digestas... Vol. 2. Impensis Laurentii Salvii.
  20. ^ Kroupa, Sebestian (November 2015). "Ex epistulis Philippinensibus: Georg Joseph Kamel SJ (1661–1706) and His Correspondence Network". Centaurus. 57 (4): 229–259. doi:10.1111/1600-0498.12099. ISSN 1600-0498.
  21. ^ Zhen PANG; Yi-Ling WANG; Nitin MANTRI; Yang WANG; Xue-Jun HUA; Yan-Ping QUAN; Xuan ZHOU; Zheng-Dong JIANG; Zhe-Chen QI; Hong-Fei LU (2022). "Molecular phylogenetic relationships and taxonomy position of 161 Camellia species in China". Taiwania. 67 (4). doi:10.6165/tai.2022.67.560.
  22. ^ Qin, Sheng-Yuan; Chen, Kai; Zhang, Wen-Ju; Xiang, Xiao-Guo; Zuo, Zheng-Yu; Guo, Cen; Zhao, Yao; Li, Lin-Feng; Wang, Yu-Guo; Song, Zhi-Ping; Yang, Ji; Yang, Xiao-Qiang; Zhang, Jian; Jin, Wei-Tao; Wen, Qiang; Zhao, Song-Zi; Chen, Jia-Kuan; Li, De-Zhu; Rong, Jun (2024). "Phylogenomic insights into the reticulate evolution of Camellia sect. Paracamellia Sealy (Theaceae)". Journal of Systematics and Evolution. 62 (1): 38–54. Bibcode:2024JSyEv..62...38Q. doi:10.1111/jse.12948. ISSN 1674-4918.
  23. ^ Journal of Plant Research, September 2016, Volume 129, Issue 5, pp 823–831, Camellia nanningensis sp. nov.: the earliest fossil wood record of the genus Camellia (Theaceae) from East Asia by Lu-Liang Huang, Jian-Hua Jin, Cheng Quan and Alexei A.
  24. ^ Harder, A.; Holden–Dye, L.; Walker, R.; Wunderlich, F. (2005). "Mechanisms of action of emodepside". Parasitology Research. 97 (Supplement 1): S1–S10. doi:10.1007/s00436-005-1438-z. PMID 16228263.
  25. ^ a b Rivers, M.C. 2018. Camellia amplexicaulis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T191323A1975870. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T191323A1975870.en. Accessed on 27 February 2026.
  26. ^ a b c Beech, E., Barstow, M., & Rivers, M. (2017). The red list of Theaceae. Botanic Gardens Conservation International.
  27. ^ How to Use Japanese Camellia (Tsubaki) Oil. [1].
  28. ^ Majumder, Soumya; Ghosh, Arindam; Bhattacharya, Malay (2020-08-27). "Natural anti-inflammatory terpenoids in Camellia japonica leaf and probable biosynthesis pathways of the metabolome". Bulletin of the National Research Centre. 44 (1): 141. doi:10.1186/s42269-020-00397-7. ISSN 2522-8307.
  29. ^ Kaemfer, Amoenitates exoticae, 1712, noted by Alice M. Coats, Garden Shrubs and Their Histories (1964) 1992, s.v. "Camellia".
  30. ^ Coats (1964) 1992.
  31. ^ The New York Botanical Garden, Curtis' Botanical Magazine, Volume X Bronx, New York: The New York Botanical Garden, 1797
  32. ^ RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. p. 1136. ISBN 978-1-4053-3296-5.
  33. ^ "RHS Plant Selector Camellia 'Cornish Snow' (cuspidata × saluenensis) AGM / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  34. ^ "RHS Plant Selector Camellia 'Cornish Spring' (cuspidata × japonica) AGM / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  35. ^ "RHS Plant Selector Camellia 'Francie L' AGM / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  36. ^ "RHS Plant Selector Camellia 'Freedom Bell' AGM / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  37. ^ "RHS Plant Selector Camellia 'Inspiration' (reticulata × saluenensis) AGM / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  38. ^ "RHS Plant Selector Camellia 'Leonard Messel' (reticulata × williamsii) AGM / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  39. ^ "RHS Plant Selector Camellia 'Royalty' (japonica × reticulata) AGM / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  40. ^ "RHS Plant Selector Camellia 'Spring Festival' (cuspidata hybrid) AGM / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  41. ^ "RHS Plant Selector Camellia 'Tom Knudsen' (japonica × reticulata) AGM / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  42. ^ "Camellia 'Tristrem Carlyon'". RHS. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
  43. ^ "State Flower of Alabama". Official Symbols and Emblems of Alabama. Alabama Department of Archives and History. February 6, 2014. Archived from the original on 2012-07-28. Retrieved 2019-05-07.
  44. ^ Toni Boornazian (November 23, 2020). "Camellia: The "Winter's Rose"". Stuyvesant Park Neighborhood Association. Retrieved 2022-08-10.

Further reading

[edit]
  • F. Camangi, A. Stefani, T. Bracci, A. Minnocci, L. Sebastiani, A. Lippi, G. Cattolica, A.M. Santoro: Antiche camelie della Lucchesia (Storia, Botanico, Cultura, agronomia novità scientifiche e curiosità; Orto Botanico Comunale di Lucca) (in Italian). Edition ETS; Lucca, 2012..
[edit]
Wikispecies logo
Wikispecies has information related to Camellia.
Wikimedia Commons logo
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Camellia.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Camellia&oldid=1347785644"