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Camellias: a visual and tasty treat

by Carol Blitzer

Most flower fanciers can identify the bright, curly petals of camellias, but how many know the taste of camellia leaves, brewed into tea?

Actually, most everyone. The tea we're most familiar with is brewed from camellia seninsis.

This is not your garden-variety camellia, however, noted Tom Rogers, curator of collections at the Filoli Center in Woodside. Rogers will give talks on tea during Camellia Treasures: Tea to Trees at Filoli, Feb. 18-22.

The annual celebration of Filoli's extraordinary collection of camellias includes docent-led tours of the nine species and hundreds of plants at the center, as well as tea tastings, a Japanese tea ceremony, and demonstrations of techniques for proper care and arranging of camellias.

According to Rogers, an old legend tells of how the early gods of China were boiling water under a seninsis plant when the leaves dropped in, thus preparing the first brewed tea.

Rogers recalled another tale about Richard Twining, whose shipment of green tea got waterlogged, then fermented. He dried it out and - voila! - invented black tea. Before that time, the tea that one associates with the Victorian era in England was really a "tisane," or herbal drink.

Although the camellia seninsis produces a pretty, reddish flower, Rogers said it really doesn't thrive here. "It does better in India, in the Darjeeling area," he added.

The transportation of dried tea leaves used to be quite a challenge, having to be schlepped overland on camels' backs. The tea was first pressed into bricks, then pieces chipped off as needed.

Samples of tea bricks will be on display, as well as tea services, ranging from fine 18th-Century French and 19th-Century German sets to one Rogers calls "pure corny." In addition, visitors can see one of the earliest English ads for tea, which dates back to 1658, in a newspaper saved because it announced the death of Oliver Cromwell.

The tea theme will continue with Chanoyu, a Japanese Tea Ceremony, to be presented by the Urasenke Foundation, on Feb. 18 and Feb. 22. The tea ceremony was adapted to table height, designed for Western taste in the 19th Century.

The docent-led tours of the camellia gardens will offer insights into the distinct characteristics of the japonica, reticulata and sasanqua species, including when they bloom and which are fragrant. Many of the camellia plants were introduced in the 1930s and 1940s, when Filoli's oak canopy offered them the dappled sunlight they require to grow. Lurline Roth, Filoli's former owner, purchased many of her plants from the Domotos Family Nursery (most recently located in Hayward) and the Nuccio family nursery in Altadena, according to Molly Barker, Filoli's education director.

The docents will likely recount the intriguing history of Filoli's many examples of camellia reticulata, or retics, which were introduced to Western European gardens in the 1820s. The flower, also known as 'Captain Rawes,' was so named after Captain Richard Rawes, who, as an employee of the East India Company, brought the first camellia reticulata to England. The flower created quite a stir when it was brought over from China, according to Barker.

The retics were hunted for many years after that but were not found in significant numbers until the late 1940s when 19 varieties were discovered growing in Yunnan Buddhist temples. These cultivars were exported to the West Coast of the United States by Descanso and Huntington gardens. Today, Filoli has 14 of those varieties, Barker said. She suggested looking especially for camellia reticulata 'shot silk,' 'Mandalay Queen,' 'Crimson Rose' and 'Buddha.'

Admission to most of the Camellia Treasures events and tours is free (included in admission to Filoli), except the Japanese Tea Ceremonies, which sell out very quickly.

Carol Blitzer can be reached at cblitzer@paweekly.com.
What: Camellia Treasures: Tea to Trees Where: Filoli Center, 86 Canada Road, Woodside When: Tuesday through Saturday, Feb. 18-22 Events: Docent-led Camellia Tours, Feb. 18-22, 11 a.m.-12:15 p.m. or 1:30-2:15 p.m. (free);

Japanese Tea Ceremony, Feb. 18, 10-11 a.m. or Feb. 22, 2-3 p.m. ($10 for members, $15 for non-members);

Camellia Pruning Demonstration, Feb. 18, 2:30-3:15 p.m.; Feb. 19, 10-10:45 a.m.; Feb. 21, 12:30-1:15 p.m.; Feb. 22, 10:45-11:30 a.m. (free);

Camellia Potting-up Demonstration, Feb. 19, 12:30-1:15 p.m. or Feb. 22, 2-2:45 p.m. (free);

Hourly Tea Tasting, Feb. 20, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. (free);

Floral Design with Camellias, Feb. 21, 10-11 a.m. or Feb. 22, noon-1 p.m. (free). Hours: Filoli is open Tuesday through Saturday, between 10 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., with last admission at 2:30 p.m. Cost: Admission to Filoli is $10 for adults, $5 for students and $1 for children ages 7-12. Children under 7 are free. Info: Call (650) 364-8300 for reservations and directions or visit the Web site at www.filoli.org.