Camellia Collection

Visit the Camellias

In winter, head to the Camellia Collection to find flowering in abundance.

It’s hard to decide whether a camellia’s flowers are more beautiful on the plant, or when they drop and carpet the ground. Camellias can be found all over Melbourne Gardens, but wander down the path to discover a  cluster in this garden.

All camellias are native to Southeast Asia where they were first valued for their oil (extracted from seeds) or tea (from dried leaves). In Australia, we highly value them in our gardens for their spectacular show of wintertime flowers and year-round gorgeous glossy foliage.

Connecting to Country 

This Collection is on the traditional lands of the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people. As you explore the Gardens you will see four colours and four words in Woi-wurrung language on the signs to reflect the Traditional Owners’ connection to Country and this particular place. The word tanderrum refers to a cultural gathering place in Woi-wurrung and the signs in this area have pink highlights.

Notes from our team

“This is a lovely collection to work in. The winding path allows you to be quite hidden from the rest of the garden so you can focus on the beauty of this collection without distraction. It’s quite magical really.

We’ve also planted some other beauties in here, including pretty bulbs, divinely scented daphnes, and delicate hellebores – all bordered by the slender strands of mondo grass."
Curator, Camellia Collection

Want more Camellia content? 

Head to the living collections page to learn more about curating this stunning collection.

Camellia Collection