Associate Professor of American Studies Wendy Cheng how the collection of camellias at Descanso Gardens can be traced to Japanese American flower growers of the 1930s, who were later interned during World War II. “Japanese American flower growers right before the war made up 50 percent of the LA flower market,” she said. “They were really instrumental in bringing those varieties to Southern California and really transforming the landscape into the beautiful landscape that we know today.”