Pillnitzer Kamelie, Dresden

Kamelia in Pillnitz - one of the oldest camellia in Europe. She is about 200 years old and is protected by a special protective structure. The tree is about 8.6 m in height, the diameter of its crown is about 11 m. In the period from February to April, about 35,000 flowers cover.

The first copies of Camellia were brought to Europe from Asia in 1692. Kamelia from Pillnitz is one of four copies that Karl Peter Thunberg brought to Kew Gardens in London from his trip to Japan in 1775-1776. One seedling remained in London, the others were given to the gardens of European rulers in Vienna, Hanover and Dresden.

The tree came to Saxony in the 1880s. The seedling grew over time and in 1801 the gardener's assistant Carl Adolph Terscheck planted the tree in the ground. In winter, they were initially protected by straw and sip mats, and later a wooden protective structure was built. In January 1905, a fire consumed her. Although the water used to extinguish the fire froze, the camellia survived at a temperature of minus 20 degrees.

In 1992, the tree received a new, aluminum-glass protective structure. It is 13.2 m high and weighs 54 tons. It is moved on special rails. In the period from October to May, it protects the camera. Then the temperature of 4-6 degrees is maintained inside the structure.