Camellia

Fundamental Facts

HARDINESS: Zones 6 to 9
PREFERRED SOIL pH: Acid
PREFERRED SOIL TYPE: Moist, humus-rich
PREFERRED LIGHT: Partial to full shade
ATTRIBUTES: Glossy evergreen foliage, single or double flowers; for beds, pots, specimens
SEASON OF INTEREST: Year-round; flowers appear in fall, winter, or spring
FAVORITES: C. japonica, C. sasanqua and their cultivars; hardy 'Winter's Charm'
QUIRKS: Blooms in winter
GOOD NEIGHBORS: Azaleas, ferns, hosta, Japanese anemone, primrose, pulmonaria
WHERE IT GROWS BEST: Partial shade in warm climates
POTENTIAL PROBLEMS: Frost damage to the blossoms; scale
PRUNING: Prune off damaged stems, spent flowers
CRITTER RESISTANCE: Good except for squirrels
SOURCE: Nursery plants
DIMENSIONS: C. japonica 20-25 ft (6-7.5m) toil, 8 ft (2.4 m) wide; C. sasanqua 6-8 ft (1.8-2.4 m) tall, 4 ft (1.2 m) wide; flowers to 8 in (20.3 cm)

Camellia in the Landscape

Camellias are shade-garden treasures for mild-winter climates. They have been cherished in Asian gardens for thousands of years and for centuries in North America, where they are also grown in cool rooms indoors in cold-winter areas. Set off by glossy evergreen leaves, the rose-shaped flowers may be single, semidouble, or double and come in white, pink, red, or also bicolor combinations. Camellias will bloom from fall to spring, depending on your climate and the cultivar.

Because all camellias need shade, and many benefit from protection from wind, they can be planted around a house foundation, where they thrive in the part-day shadows, or planted under a high canopy of trees. The new hardy camellias, adapted to Zone 6, should be given similar protection from winter wind, as well as from morning sun, which can damage flower buds that have been frosted and need to thaw gradually. Where cold weather is not a concern, the shrubs can be grown as a hedge or screen.

Camellias make beautiful cut flowers. Snip a short woody stem with a blossom and a pair of leaves and float it in a glass bowl, a popular indoor display technique for these flowers.

All in the Family

Durable and long-lived, common camellia (Camellia japonica) produces the most magnificent flowers of all. These are usually grafted plants, growing on the hardier rootstocks of related plants. They grow into pyramidal bushes 20-25 ft (6.1-7.S m) tall, bloom from fall to spring, and are hardy in Zones 8 and 9. Good choices among the thousands of cultivars include the crimson 'Alexander Hunter', pink 'Debutante', white
'Purity', and 'Donckelaeri', which is red marbled with white.

Sasanqua camellias (C. sasanqua) grow on their own roots and bloom in late fall to winter. These tough 6-10 ft (1.83 m) tall shrubs can tolerate a half day of sun, and many are hardy to Zone 7. Look for bright red 'Crimson King', rose 'Hugh Evans", and pink-tinged white 'Narumigata'. Gardeners in Zone 6 should watch for the new hybrids created by crossing C. sasanqua with a Chinese species, such as the medium pink 'Winter's Charm' and light blush pink 'Winter's Star'.

Growing Camellia

Before setting out a container-grown plant, dig a planting hole 3 times the width of the container and mix in a 4 in (10.2 cm) deep layer of compost or peat moss. Also add garden sulfur if needed to create an acid soil with a pH of 4.5-6.0. Set the plant high in the hole so that the top of the root ball is 2 in (5.1 cm) above the soil line. As the soil settles, the plant will sink, ending up only slightly raised. Keep the soil over the roots mulched year-round with a 3 in (7.6 cm) thick layer of shredded bark or pine needles. When properly planted, camellias need little fertilizer or pruning.

In freezing Zones, grow camellias in pots and bring them into a chilly room, such as a porch or garage, as temperatures approach freezing. When they bloom, bring them indoors or cut the flowers for arrangements.
Camellias are relatively pest free, but sap-sucking scale insects, which look like small immobile oval bumps, sometimes colonize stems and leaves. To smother and kill scale, spray commercial horticultural oil, in late winter according to label directions. Squirrels, which are very hard to control, may eat flower buds.
Japanese camellias are resilient evergreens with glossy leaves and prolific blossoms.