Do you know the meaning of the camellia when given as a gift?

Camellia, pink: Longing for you
Camellia, red: Steadfastness; excellence
Camellia, white: You're adorable
Camellia: Admiration; perfection; good luck gift to a man

The camellias are leafing out very nicely right now. The ration of cotton seed meal seems to have hit the spot.

I pollenated so many flowers (and covered them with the small white organza party bags) that it looks very festive out there. Some of the flowers pollenated successfully and the seed pods will continue to grow until Fall. Many of the organza bags must be removed because the leaf buds have sprouted and need space. Once the seed pod is a little bigger, I will put the bag back on to keep the seeds from dropping to the ground once the pod cracks open.

There's Gold in Them Hills

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Colby went with me to Nuccio's Nurseries in Altadena where he photographed some yellow beauties. The sun in the background made them shimmer like gold.

Camellia nitidissima was the first yellow camellia seen by the western world. It came to us from China in the 1970s.