| English Name | Crapnell's Camellia |
|---|---|
| Status in China | Vulnerable (VU). Recorded in China Plant Red Data Book. |
Description:
Small trees, 5-7 m tall, bark orange-red. Leaves thickly leathery, obovate-elliptic to elliptic, 8-12 cm long, 4-5 cm wide, apex acute, base cuneate, glabrous, serrulate; petiole 0.6-1 cm long. Flowers solitary and terminal, 8-10 cm in diam., sessile; bracts 3; sepals 5, obovate, covered with caduceus tomentum outside; petals 6-8, white, obovate, 3-4.5 cm long, connate at base, outmost 2 hairy; stamens numerous, distinct, 1.7 cm long; ovary hairy, styles 3. Capsule globose 7-10 in diameter.
Distribution:
Mount Parker and Mau Ping. Guangxi, Fujian, Zhejiang.
Habitat and Ecology:
On margin of forests or in thin forests. Flowering: Dec.; fruiting: Jun.-Sept. of the following year.
The species was first collected and described by W. J. Tutcher from Mount Parker, Hong Kong. The red bark and large white flower make it an attractive ornamental plant. Seed oil is edible. In Hong Kong, it is restricted to a few wild populations, but the localities of occurrence are in Country Parks under protection. This species has also been listed under Forestry Regulations (Cap. 96 sub. leg.). Seeds have been collected in the field and seedlings have been raised for ex-situ conservation. AFCD has reintroduced the species to the wild and populations have been established. Living plants have also been displayed in the Shing Mun Arboretum.
References:
張宏達，1991：廣東植物誌2：129，圖82。廣東科技出版社，廣州。
張宏達，1998：中國植物誌49(3): 18，圖版4：1-5。科學出版社，北京。
閔天祿，2000：世界山茶屬的研究224-225，圖版48：1-5。雲南科技出版社，昆明。
Tutcher, W.J., 1905: Journal of the Linnean Society, Botany 37(258): 63-64.
