Camellia Selection

There are some eight thousand registered camellias. You don't have to limit yourself to Debutante, Pink Perfection and Professor Sargent as the following lists show. Many of these lists are based upon research in Camellia Nomenclature (including the Historical edition), an encyclopedia of registered camellias. Camellia Nomenclature may be purchased through the Mississippi Gulf Coast Camellia Society, as well as, many other camellia societies and clubs. We also include here nearby public camellia gardens.

A checklist for selecting camellias		Camellia species, bloom qualities, disease resistance and other qualities
Camellia gardens		Lists and links to various camellia gardens & camellia collections.
Links to hundreds of photographs of camellias		This list of nearly 400 camellias has links to photographs at other websites, primarily the American Camellia Society.
Camellia grafts for sale at the 2003 Mississippi Gulf Coast Camellia Society show.		These varieties are not commonly found at garden centers, but represent some of the most popular varieties among camellia hobbyists.
Camellia of the Year.		This is the Mississippi Gulf Coast Camellia Society's Camellias of the Year.
Camellia societies		One of the best ways to select and obtain camellia varieties is to visit local camellia shows and join local camellia societies. In addition to our show in Gulfport there are nearby shows in Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Slidell, Brookhaven, Mobile, Pensacola and Fort Walton. Here is a more complete list of camellia societies, most of whom have shows. Please visit American Camellia Society website for show particulars.
Camellias introduced by residents of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.		The coast has a long history of camellia introductions as this list of over sixty introductions shows.
Two recent national award winners from the coast		Camellias Melissa Anne and Elaine's Betty are two recent introductions from our area that have won top honors nationally, and hundreds of awards in local shows across the country. These two plants are musts for local gardens.
List of commonly seen camellias.		This is a list of nearly 500 camellias seen in recent (early 2000s) camellia shows in Gulfport, New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Mobile. Also included in the list are plants seen in some of the more extensive camellia gardens in the area.
The following lists are derived from Camellia Nomenclature and are the most comprehensive lists of their kind:
	Antique camellias.	This is a list of pre-1900 camellias still to be found in gardens. Of course there are probably still many more existing as nameless survivors or lost all together.
	A list of nearly 1000 camellias with a formal double flower form	Think Pink Perfection is the perfect camellia? Here is a list of camellias with the same formal double flower form as Pink Perfection. For a discussion and illustration of different flower forms click here.
	Camellias with miniature blooms	Camellia exhibitors are often drawn to both extremes of camellia bloom size. See Photo. These two lists are of plants that bloom either 2 1/2 inches or less or over 5 inches in diameter.
	Camellias with very large blooms.
	Early blooming varieties.	This is a list of camellias that bloom exclusively in the early season (before January 1st). An advantage of an early bloomer on the gulf coast is that it will avoid the petal blight season (which down here begins in mid January) and its bloom is less likely to be damaged by frost.
	Fragrant camellias	Camellias are not just appreciated for their bloom, other characteristics such as fragrance, leaf and cold hardiness are sometimes to be considered.
	Distinctive leaf characteristics
	Cold hardiness
	US National Arboretum Washington DC	Page on cold hardy camellias at the National Arboretum
	Expedition to China	Longwood Garden Camellia Tour in China in 2000. Good photos of native habitat.

	Camellia Selection
	Photo galleries, lists of recommended varieties, and lists of camellias with special attributes such as bloom size, cold hardiness and fragrance.
(c) 2004 Mississippi Gulf Coast Camellia Society
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