CAMELLIAS

Camellias are versatile evergreen shrubs, that can be grown with ease in a wide range of climates. They are valuable landscaping plants popular for their year round dark green foliage and structure in the garden. They have abundant displays of flowers from late autumn to early summer in a variety of shapes, colours and perfumes. They will also attract nectar seeking birds to your garden.

Selection

Camellias are evergreen, flowering from late autumn to early summer. There are large and small flowered varieties. They grow from a height of 50cm to 3 metres but modern varieties tend to reach only 1.5 to 2 metres. Smaller varieties are perfect for growing in containers. What you choose will depend on how the plant is to be used, for example, as topiary or espalier, a screen or hedge, in a narrow space, in a pot on the patio, or as a feature shrub in a garden border.  

When to plant

The best time to purchase new camellias is autumn and winter, when you can see them in flower and you’ll find the best selection available in garden centres. However, they can be planted at any time if they are well watered through the summer months.

Where & how to plant

Refer to the article ‘How to Plant’.

Camellias are at their best planted in mixed borders, blending in well with many other plants. Large specimens can create a backdrop to mixed plantings of smaller shrubs and shade-loving perennials. 

Camellias enjoy well-drained organically rich soil. It should be cool moist and acidic (ph4.5-6.0). They prefer shelter from strong wind and excessive sun, but do make great screens and hedges . As a rule, the smaller leafed types (Sasanquas) can take more exposure because their small leaves have less surface area to dehydrate. 

Plant in soil prepared with ican Premium Compost and ican Real Blood & Bone. Add a small handful of ican Slow Food as a base fertiliser. Create raised beds in clay soil to improve drainage. 

A newly planted camellia needs to be firmly anchored into the soil. After you place the rootball in its planting hole, fill in around the root ball with prepared soil. Lightly press it in with your fingers. Thoroughly water the soil to establish good contact between the root ball and the soil. Never use your foot on the root ball – the less the soil is compacted the better the aeration and drainage will be.

Feeding & watering

Camellias are not heavy feeders but an application of ican Acid Food in spring and autumn will produce a healthy plant and abundant flowers. Camellias do not like lime.

Water regularly during summer, giving a deep soak rather than light sprinklings which only encourages the roots near the surface where they will dry out. Complement the watering with a deep layer of mulch (compost, leaf mould, bark fines) applied mid-winter and again mid-summer to keep the roots cool and damp.

Pruning

Regular pruning is generally not needed for camellias, but if required should be done after flowering in spring. In established bushy plants, prune out about a third of the branches to let in air and light. Old large camellias can be cut back into mature wood to limit their size but do this progressively over three years to avoid shock. Thin out the regrowth to develop a well-shaped bush.  

Small leaved compact camellias make very good topiary specimens.

Pests and diseases

Scale insects, leaf-roller caterpillars and thrips are the main pests of camellias.  

Scale insects have tiny limpet-like external shells and can be found on the stems and under the leaves along the ribs. They suck the sap of the plant, and excrete a sticky honey dew which can attract black sooty mould. 

Leaf roller caterpillars will chew the leaves and create a protective home for themselves by rolling leaves together with a fine silky web.

Thrips are very small black insects that feed on the undersides of the leaves causing them to go silver. Shrubs that have been hard hit by thrips should be cut back to promote fresh new growth.  

Yates Mavrik plus Grosafe Enspray99 are effective on all three pests.  

Camellia petal blight is the most serious disease, and affects plants flowering later in the season. A brown rot develops at the base of the petals which spreads to the whole flower. When the flower is removed, a circle of white fungal threads can be seen at its base. There are no effective sprays for petal blight. Always remove diseased flowers from the tree and ground to reduce the source of infection. Those flowers should not be composted.  

Camellias in containers

Any camellia can be grown in a pot, but for longer term container growing, choose small cultivars and those described as ‘compact’ or ‘slow growing’. Repot into fresh ican Premium Potting Mix every two or three years, with a handful of ican Slow Food. It is possible to trim the roots if you wish to keep them in the same pot, but always repot into fresh potting mix and ideally, repot into a slightly larger container each time. If the pot is too large for the plant the roots may suffer from sitting in excessive cold damp mix. Drainage is very important. Plants growing in containers need frequent watering and more feeding then those in the ground. 

Suitable camellias for containers:

•        Bonzai baby (hot pink double)

•        Itty Bit (soft pink)

•        Nicky Crisp (pink)

•        Quintessence (pale pink)

•        Silver column (white)

•        Transnokoensis (white with a hint of pink)

•        Yuletide (red single, very compact)