Aimee Yee

Daily Star Staff Writer

The third annual Camellia Garden Stroll will be open to the public Sunday.

The garden, located across from the Hammond Research Station off of U.S. Highway 190, next to Lynhaven, contains a collection of 650 camellia japonicas and sasanquas planted from the early 1930s through the early 1950s.

Admission to the event, co-sponsored by the LSU AgCenter and Tangipahoa Parish Master Gardeners Association, is free.

Any donations received will be used to maintain the garden, which fell into neglect in the 1990s, Research Coordinator Regina Bracy said Friday afternoon as she pointed out the two-acre tract that's a well-kept secret in Hammond.

The garden was planted by Hody Wilson, superintendent of the station from 1936 to 1975.

Camellias were his passion. Wilson nurtured, cherished and produced many seedlings during the late 1930s to the early 1950s.

After the garden fell into neglect, the Louisiana Master Gardeners in Tangipahoa Parish came to the rescue in 1999 and provided the time and energy to clean up the mess, Bracy said.

When the camellias were blooming, experts were asked to come and identify as many selections as possible.

Today, about 450 of the camellia bushes are named.

Some of the bushes were the seedlings that Wilson developed and have never been named, Bracy said. The unnamed bushes are on the south side of the garden, while the north side bushes have been named.

Master Gardeners work in the garden periodically to keep it up, and research station workers also pick up branches, pine cones, vines and weeds.

Among the named bushes is a memorial camellia bush, "Sweet Jane," which was named in honor of Hammond resident Susan Spiller, a master gardener who died March 18, 2001.

Spiller pushed the group to keep on battling the vines and clean up the garden. Just before the 2002 Camellia Garden Stroll, the "Sweet Jane" bush was planted and a plaque placed alongside it to honor Spiller's perseverance and encouragement in getting this collection restored.

If not for her, Bracy said, the garden may still be overrun with weeds and vines.

A trail winds through the garden, and Bracy asked that people participating in the Camellia Stroll remember they are in a woodland setting. The ground may be wet, and there might also be holes along the trail.

The bushes on the south side of the garden may have never been named, she said, because it's possible Wilson was waiting to see if it was worth naming.

Things Wilson would've been looking for in a good bush would be longevity, prolific flowering and distinctive flowering, Bracy said.

"Basically, you want a hearty bush that grows well and produces a lot of flowers," she said.

On Friday afternoon, with a cool wind blowing and shade provided by the trees, the gardens were dappled with sunlight that filtered through the canopy of leaves made by the large bushes and nearby pine trees.

A beautiful dark pink camellia called the "Jesse Bryson" caught afternoon rays in the garden.

Several bushes away, close to the entrance, was a large white camellia bush, with white petals touching the ground under a low canopy. Fallen white petals covered the ground beneath the bush.

A large tree in the middle of the garden held a medium-pink flower, and the bush's bark was also stained pink. The canopy provided by this bush was large enough to stand under.

Many bushes had buds that weren't quite open yet, but it didn't stop bees from swarming near a bush with white and pink striped flowers and pink and red flowers.

The path meandered through the garden toward a bush called "Vulcan." The red flower had white stripes on it, and bees hovered nearby, ready to find nectar.

One of the lightest pink camellia bushes in the garden is called "Creation."

All of the named bushes have plaques or name plates near the base of the bush for easy identification.

The two most well-known selections are "Manship" and "Jerry Wilson,"

Anyone who would like to visit the Camellia Garden can attend the stroll Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m.

Visitors should park at the LSU AgCenter Research and Extension and Hammond Research Station on Old Covington Highway, across the road from the Camellia Garden.