Camellias

Queens of the winter blooms, Camellias are attractive evergreen shrubs that are known for their showy flowers in shades of white, light pink, dark pink and red. With exquisite waxy and glossy dark green foliage these shrubs are a strong favourite with many gardeners.

Interestingly, Camellias have quite a few different flower forms. The six are as follows:

• Single – A single row of petals and a central group of yellow stamens.
• Semi-double – Two or more rows of petals with long stamens in the centre.
• Anemone form – One or more rows of outer petals lying flat with more petals and stamens in the centre.
• Peony form – Multiple rows of petals, irregular and mixed with stamens in the middle.
• Rose form double – Overlapping petals hiding the stamens, resembling a rose.
• Formal double – Multiple rows of overlapping petals like a traditional double flower, without stamens visible.

Camellias are easy to grow as long as they are in the required soil pH. They prefer slightly acidic conditions so they will need ericaceous soil. Test your soil with a pH kit you can pick up at Greenfingers before planting, to ensure your soil pH is between 6-6.5. If you don’t have the required acid levels, the best thing to do would be to grow your Camellia in a pot/container as you can then fill the pot with ericaceous compost.

Positioning
Camellias do best in partial or full shade. An area that gets morning shade is best as direct sun at this time can dry out the developing flower buds. Choose a sheltered spot, as an exposed, windy position is likely to cause damage to the plant.

Camellia Care
Keep Camellias well-watered throughout the summer as not only will this give you a healthy plant now, but strong plentiful blooms for next year as this is when the plant produces flower buds (ready for flowering in January onwards). It is worth feeding Camellias in spring with an Ericaceous fertiliser, at Greenfingers we have both liquid and slow-release granulated options available. Prune back dead flowers when required as this will prolong healthy flowering as well as maintaining a beautiful looking shrub.