Tag Archives: camellia

46 and Rain – That Says It All

"November Camellia", mixed media copyright Kerry McFall

November can be so very, very gray in the Willamette Valley…  but camellias seem to thrive in 46 degrees and rain.  Their patent leather leaves seem to revel in the never-ending cold shower.  And one type even blooms in winter- the sweet scent of it’s white blossoms is very strong, maybe just because the only other scent is Wet: wet pavement, wet leaves, wet cats…  Camellia Sasanqua is what Google tells me is the name of the gracious winter bloomer.

This sketch was done with watercolor and colored pencil in what I thought was a very limited palette until I saw the palette “swatch” when I cropped it.  It’s a small branch from the huge plant outside my studio window on the north side of the house.  If it’s the kind that will bloom this month, I hope it opens in time to provide a feast for the hummingbird that until very recently paid a daily visit to the lone remaining geranium in the window box.