Famed camellia nursery damaged by Altadena wildfire

The house burned down, but Sacramento’s camellias survived. Now, those plants need water.

That’s the report from Nuccio’s Nurseries, the legendary birthplace of countless camellias and azaleas.

Located in the Chaney Trail neighborhood of Altadena, the 90-year-old nursery suffered major damage during the Eaton fire, which is ongoing.

In the Camellia City, Nuccio’s is a familiar name. Their camellias grace thousands of Sacramento-area gardens and are a popular fundraiser for the Camellia Society of Sacramento’s annual Sacramento Camellia Show. About 300 Nuccio’s plants sold out by Sunday morning at the club’s 2024 show.

Julie Vierra of the Camellia Society regularly talks to co-owners Jim and Tom Nuccio. In recent weeks, they had been making arrangements for pick-up of hundreds of plants for Sacramento’s 2025 show on the first weekend in March. In 1-gallon pots, the plants were ready and waiting Jan. 8 – but the fire broke out that morning before dawn.

The small family home where Tom Nuccio lived on the 40-acre property was destroyed by the wildfire. So were several sheds and outbuildings. Tom, 77, owns and operates the nurseries with his brother, Jim, 75, whose Altadena home survived.

About a week earlier, Tom had been hospitalized for an unrelated illness. Jim and his wife, Judi, are still evacuated and staying with family.

Miraculously, most of the potted camellias did not burn. Tucked under shade cloth, thousands of plants survived unscathed.

At least by the fire, that is; they’re now extremely thirsty. Many of the plants have not been watered since Jan. 7.

“They individually water plants every day by hand,” Vierra explained. “It’s how they’ve always done it.”

Vierra got an update Wednesday: “Jim says the 200 to 300 plants he set aside for Sacramento are OK. We’re going to the Huntington Camellia Show (in San Marino) if they have it on Feb. 8. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get into the nursery by then. Whether the plants will still be alive, we don’t know.”

The same Santa Ana winds that whipped the wildfire also quickly suck moisture out of plants. An update on Facebook noted that a volunteer was able to get a water truck of non-potable water into the nursery this week.

This already had been a bittersweet year for the Nuccio brothers. They had earlier announced that 2025 would be the nursery’s final year. A planned sale of the property to a nearby school fell through, but other negotiations are ongoing.

Plant breeders for generations, the Nuccios have developed scores of camellia varieties including such favorites as ‘Pink Perfection’ and ‘Nuccio’s Pearl.’ In Altadena, they grow more than 500 varieties of camellias and azaleas.

Last weekend as the neighborhood around the nursery still smoldered, Jim Nuccio rescued about 125 of their rarest plants.

“Jim took two vans of his rarest camellias, one each to the Huntington Library and Descanso Gardens (for their camellia collections),” Vierra said. “He wanted them to have them.”

Since the fire, the Nuccios have received calls and messages from hundreds of customers and camellia lovers, Vierra said. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help them reopen, at least for a few more months. (The fundraiser had received $26,730 in donations as of Thursday, and the organizer has halted new donations for the time being.)

“Jim was shocked – he got calls from around the world,” Vierra said. “It’s so sad, but he’s in good spirits. I can’t wait to go down there to see them.”