Let’s start February with one of my favourite photographs; coincidentally, it is also a personal favourite plant: Camellia transnokoensis. I don’t think there’s a common name for it in English, though Mount Noko camellia has a pleasant fluidity when spoken. The epithet transnokoensis means “of across Noko”, alluding to a native distribution across Mt. Noko of Taiwan.
January in Vancouver has been extremely wet this year, including a stretch of weeks with daily precipitation that missed the record of consecutive days of rainfall by mere hours. I haven’t therefore had much opportunity to take photographs. When I did attempt some picture-taking on January 26, I noted that this camellia’s first flower of the year had opened. This photograph, however, is from last February in the David C. Lam Asian Garden.
For photographs of the plant in flower and habit, you can see the thread on the garden’s discussion forums from late March 2003: Camellia transnokoensis. There are not too many other images available online of this rare-in-cultivation plant.
Photography resource link: Woodsong Nature Photography is the site of Cindy Mead, who also happens to be a frequent contributor at Nature Photographers Online. You might recall the Orton imagery technique I used in a BPotD entry last month. Cindy is also a fan of the technique, and has an entire gallery of Orton Method Imagery. She also has a weblog, WoodSong.
I’d love to see it in bloom. Hope you get an opportunity to capture a photograph.
Best regards,
Knox M. Henry
Camellia transnokoensis – Z7 – RHS Index of Garden Plants, Griffiths
Macoboy, ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF CAMELLIAS has a slightly different, perhaps somewhat incorrect version:
“This awkward name means ‘from the far side of Noko’, Noko Shan being one of Taiwan’s higher mountains.”
After that he merely describes how to tell it from C. nokoensis. There is a photo showing four open flowers.
trans does translate to “across” or “through”. I can’t recall what (or if) would be the way to say “from the far side of” in Latin.
The touch of pink on the buds is very appropriate for February, and the deep pink at the base of the blooms make the flowers look even more alluring. Very pretty!
The Photo-of-the-Day is a particularly nice feature of this site.
looks almost like a rhondendron of type….
so anyways… weeks of rain, how wonderful that sounds, moisture in the air, dormant plants drinking in, ready to burst into spring.
living in southeast new mexico, i havent’ had rain for six months! count your blessings! i do mine, cactus and such….lol !
I understand it is not easily propagated. I wonder if it would be a plant to try with micropropagation. It is one of my favourites too.
this is a blatant infrimgement of my COPYWrited WORK, all of which is registered and protected. Remove ALL of my work immedeately or you will be fined very soon.
Cindy, please point out exactly where your copyright is being infringed? This is my photograph.
The photography resource link is a way for me to promote other photographers, like yourself. Links to web pages are not copyrighted, nor is permission needed to link to others.
I was just at the Portland Classical Chinese Garden on New Years Eve and they have one in the northwestern part of the garden. The buds were just starting to swell and were not as far along as the ones in this photo. I should like to add it to my collection at some point. Camellia Forest Nursery of North Carolina lists it as being hardy into Zone 7. It is a nice landscape plant and the spots of color on the outer petals certainly raise one’s interest. I wonder what the purpose of these spots are. Do they act as some sort of nectar glides?
Anyone in Oregon who has an interest in the genus Camellia is welcome to check out the Oregon Camellia Society. Our website is:
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/oregon_camellia_society/
As for Ms. Mead, you would think one would know one’s own photographs, but then again, it may have simply been someone spoofing her as a joke. In any case, they have lots and lots of wonderful Camellia photos at PBase that I will be scrolling throughout a bit more after posting here.
Do you know where I can source this in the Lower Mainland or Vancouver Island?