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Updated December 6th, 2007
By Robin Corwin - LCF Outlook
Visit Nuccio’s for
Camellias, Azaleas
Do yourself a favor this winter
and schedule a trip to Nuccio’s
Camellia and Azalea Nursery in
nearby Altadena. I try to visit
each year during camellia season
to see what’s in bloom and to
learn about new varieties. This
family-run nursery has been in
business since 1935, when two
Italian brothers started a small
wholesale operation out of a back
yard in Alhambra. In 1946, they
moved to Altadena. At some
point, they decided to specialize
in camellias and azaleas, and they
are now one of the premier
sources in the country for these
plants.
New camellia and azalea cultivars
are created yearly at the
nursery, which is staffed by eight
employees and supervised by second-
generation brothers Tom and
Jim Nuccio, along with their
cousin, Jude. Nuccio’s also purchases
promising varieties from
hobbyist hybridizers and imports
rare species from China and
Japan. They carry many of the
newly fashionable yellow camellias,
the work of Japanese
hybridizer, Mr. Tadao Yamaguchi.
Even though they’re located
right here in the Southland, a
large portion of their business
goes to Bay Area gardeners. An
additional 15% of their sales
comes from out-of-state customers,
all without a website,
color catalog or advertising. They
even sell plants to Japan.
I asked Jim Nuccio to name a
few of their best sellers. He mentioned
‘Alaska’ azalea, a pure
white continuous bloomer. He
said they also sell a lot of ‘Red
Wing’ azaleas. This is the variety
(also called ‘Red Bird’ and ‘Red
Ruffles’) that makes up the mass
of azaleas in the Getty Center’s
central garden maze.
Popular camellias include the
japonica ‘Pink Perfection’ with
pale pink, perfectly formed petals
that look like they were sculpted
of porcelain, and ‘Nuccio’s
Gem’, which bears large,
snowy-white, double blooms of
great beauty. Best-selling sasanquas
include ‘White Doves,’
‘Setsugekka’ and “Shishi
Gashira’.
During this year’s visit, I
fell for Camellia sasanqua
‘Himekoki.’A friend of mine recommended
its compact, bushy
form and profuse flowering. The
clear pink blooms are faintly
scented and resemble the starry
blossoms of Magnolia stellata. I
also just had to have ‘Egao
Corkscrew,’ a quirky sport with
contorted limbs that resembles a
natural bonsai. It makes a perfect
container specimen and will fool
people into thinking a bonsai
master has been hard at work.
Nuccio’s is closed
Wednesdays, Thursdays and
some Sundays. It is located at
3555 Chaney Trail, and their
phone number is (626) 794-3383.
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