Camellia Garden Stroll scheduled Feb. 19

By: Johnny Morgan, jmorgan@agcenter.lsu.edu
HAMMOND – The annual Camellia Garden Stroll at the LSU AgCenter Hammond Research Station will be held on Feb. 19 from 1 to 4 p.m.
Visitors are invited to stroll through a collection of more than 800 camellias that was planted by Hody Wilson from the 1930s to early 1950s when he was the station superintendent, said Allen Owings, resident coordinator at the station.
“The camellias were research trials of the varieties available at the time and a few that were bred but were never named and released,” Owings said.
During the 1990s the planting was neglected because of a shift in the research focus at the station.
In 1999, several newly trained Louisiana Master Gardeners in Tangipahoa Parish came to the rescue by taking on the cleanup and maintenance of the camellia garden, Owings said.
Camellias, including some hard-to-find varieties, will be offered for sale by the Tangipahoa Master Gardeners.
The Camellia Garden Stroll is co-sponsored by the LSU AgCenter and the Tangipahoa Parish Master Gardener Association. Admission to the event is free and open to the public.
For additional information, contact LSU AgCenter agent Whitney Wallace at 985-748-5462.
The Hammond Research Station is located at 21549 Old Covington Highway, just off U.S. 190.