Camellias

My favorite flowers have always been peonies, hyacinths and orchids, but this weekend I added another to my list. I had the pleasure of viewing the prize winning Camellia’s at the 180th annual Massachusetts Camellia Society show at Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston MA.

Mother wrote a great article about it in the local paper and we just had to go check it out for ourselves! We took a lovely and scenic route through the metro-west, only taking 2 wrong turns (thanks to me, sorry Mom) and arrived at our destination in 45 minutes flat!

Tower Hill has a HUGE outdoor area that is great in the summer and an indoor orangery and education center that was fun on a dreary February day. When we arrived we went right over to the Camellia showcase and learned a bit about their history. To quote my mother’s article:

Camellias were introduced to America in the late 18th century at a plantation in South Carolina, and made their way to Boston about 1806 where they became extremely popular. Boston merchant Theodore Lyman added a camellia greenhouse to his complex of greenhouses at The Vale in Waltham and was a founder of the camellia society which was formed under the auspices of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society.

The Camellia Society in Massachusetts is one of the oldest around, as is their annual showcase. Flowers are judged on blossoms, color and size. I took pictures of all my favorites. I hope it brightens your winter day!

A full tree!

First Prize!

A perfect bud!

Prime Specimens!

After pursing the flowers we made our way to the orangery. The trees gave MZ’s little tree on his counter a run for it’s money.

And of course no trip to a botanical garden or any garden for that matter is complete without a requisite Lottie tree pic.

After our floral adventure we headed over to the Natick Collection, ate some soup and bought some YSL makeup. A lovely girls day. I definitely want to make a return trip to the gardens come springtime!