Stewartia pseudocamellia (also Stuartia pseudocamellia; Japanese Stewartia or Deciduous Camellia; Japanese: ナツツバキ natsutsubaki, "summer camellia";^[1]Korean: 노각나무 "overripe cucumber tree"^[2]) is a plant species in the genus Stewartia in the family Theaceae, native to Japan (southern Honshū, Kyūshū, Shikoku) and Korea. It is a small to medium sized deciduous tree, growing to 10-15 m (rarely to 18 m) tall^[3][4] often with multiple stems and/or low branching trunks. The bark is smooth textured, exfoliating as the plants age, and has a camouflaged or mottled appearance with patterns of dull orange and green with grey mixed in. The trees are pyramidal to rounded in shape with deep green coloured foliage. Young stems have a zig-zag shape with flattened, divergent buds. The leaves are 4-12 cm long and 2.5-5 cm broad, arranged alternately on the stems with an elliptical shape and finely serrated edges. In the fall the foliage turns yellow, red or purple. The flowers are up to 8 cm wide, with five white petals with orange anthers; they are shaped like Camellia flowers, round and flat to somewhat cupped. They are produced in summer, generally in June until the end of August; each flower is short-lived, but many are produced that open over many weeks. The fruit is a brown capsule, triangular in shape with four or five angles, persistent on the trees but not showy.^[1][2][4]

There are two varieties:^[3][4]

• Stewartia pseudocamellia var. japonica Maxim. Japan. Flowers open cup-shaped.
• Stewartia pseudocamellia var. koreana (Nakai ex Rehd.) Sealy. Korea. Flowers open flat. Often treated as a separate species S. koreana Nakai ex Rehd., mainly in Korea.^[2]

빨간 글씨 부분만 보면 노각나무의 학명은 Stewartia pseudocamellia 이며, 한국 일본에 자생하는 종이고, 변종이 두가지가 존재하는데, Stewartia pseudocamellia var. japonica Maxim 가 하나이며, 한국에 있는 Stewartia pseudocamellia var. koreana 이 또하나인데, 이 변종을 Stewartia koreana 라고 하여 별도의 종으로도 부른답니다.