About now (June-July-August) is the best time to see the camellias flowering at Whangārei Quarry Gardens. From the purest white Mine-no-Yuki to the almost-black Takinini, the colour spectrum includes many shades of pink and red. But these are not just any camellia. Whangārei Quarry Gardens is preparing to apply to the International Camellia Society to become a Camellia Garden of Excellence, because the collection of more than 209 plants is believed to be the largest single collection of fragrant camellias in the world, and certainly the largest collection in the Southern Hemisphere.
Whangārei was home to two noted camellia breeders, Jim Finlay and Oz Blumhardt, and also Jack Tucker, a volunteer at the gardens since their inception. Jim Finlay specialised
