ArborNote’s Tree of the Week is the Camellia Tree (Camellia sasanqua). The Camellia Tree is native to southern Japan and  is usually found growing up to an altitude of 3,000 ft. While it’s typically a smaller shrub, they can grow up to 20 ft tall in the correct conditions. They bloom with beautiful, bright pink flowers starting in October that can last all the way till April! It has a long history of cultivation in Japan for practical rather than decorative reasons. The leaves are used to make tea while the seeds or nuts are used to make tea seed oil, which is used for lighting, lubrication, cooking and cosmetic purposes. Tea oil has a higher calorific content than any other edible oil available naturally in Japan.