Camellia subg. Camellia in Flora of China @ efloras.org

2. Camellia subg. Camellia

山茶亚属 shan cha ya shu

Flowers axillary, solitary or sometimes to 3 in a cluster, apparently sessile, actually with a short stout pedicel completely covered by bracteoles and sepals at anthesis. Bracteoles following closely by and undifferentiated from sepals, caducous. Sepals caducous or persistent in young fruit, crustaceous, margin membranous.

About 44 species: Bhutan, Cambodia, China, NE India, Indonesia, S Japan, S Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam; 39 species (31 endemic) in China.

Camellia sect. Calpandria (Blume) Pierre (Calpandria Blume) is an additional section in C. subg. Camellia, with C. lanceolata (Blume) Seemann in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines and C. connata (Craib) Craib in Thailand (Ming, Monogr. Gen. Camellia, 1-352. 2000).

1 Styles completely distinct (2)

+ Styles connivent or connate although sometimes only connate at very base (3)

2 (1) Ovary and fruit surface not tuberculate (species nos. 59-71). 7 C. sect. Heterogenea

+ Ovary and fruit surface tuberculate (species nos. 74-79). 9 C. sect. Tuberculatae

3 (1) Bracteoles and sepals ± persistent in young fruit; styles 3-5, connivent (species nos. 72-73). 8 C. sect. Stereocarpus

+ Bracteoles and sepals caducous or only sepals ± persistent; styles connate, although sometimes only connate at very base (4)

4 (3) Petals basally connate; androecium and gynoecium subequal to petal length (species nos. 80-91) 10 C. sect. Camellia

+ Petals distinct or nearly so; androecium and gynoecium ca. 1/3 of petal length (species nos. 92-97). 11 C. sect. Paracamellia

List of lower taxa