#22: Camellias (Camellia japonica)
@robertduval14 says, "Alabama's state flower."
@Marilyn added, "Taken from wikipedia's page at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camellia_japonica
"Camellia japonica is a flowering tree or shrub, usually 4.9–20 feet tall, but occasionally up to 36 feet tall. The youngest branches are purplish-brown, becoming grayish-brown as they age. The alternate leathery leaves are dark green on the top side, paler on the underside, usually 2.0–4.3 inches long by 1.0–2.4 inches wide with a stalk (petiole) about 0.2–0.4 inches long. The base of the leaf is pointed (cuneate), the margins are very finely toothed (serrulate) and the tip somewhat pointed.
In the wild, flowering is between January and March. The flowers appear along the branches, particularly towards the ends, and have very short stems. They occur either alone or in pairs, and are 2.4–3.9 inches across. There are about nine greenish bracteoles and sepals. Flowers of the wild species have six or seven rose or white petals, each 1.2–1.8 inches long by 0.6–1.0 inches wide; the innermost petals are joined at the base for up to a third of their length. (Cultivated forms often have more petals.) The numerous stamens are 1.0–1.4 inches long, the outer whorl being joined at the base for up to 1.0 inches. The three-lobed style is about 1.2 inches long.
The fruit consists of a globe-shaped capsule with three compartments (locules), each with one or two large brown seeds with a diameter of 0.4–0.8 inches. Fruiting occurs in September to October in the wild.
C. japonica leaves are eaten by the caterpillars of some Lepidoptera, such as The Engrailed (Ectropis crepuscularia). The Japanese white eye bird (Zosterops japonica) pollinates Camellia japonica.""