Camellia Culture

ALWAYS REMOVE FALLEN CAMELLIA BLOSSOMS FROM THE GROUND. TEACH YOUR NEIGHBORS TO PICK UP FALLEN CAMELLIA BLOSSOMS. DO NOT PUT THEM IN COMPOST. Pick up at least once a week. SELECTING CAMELLIAS Avoid buying a camellia that is not in bloom. Do not depend on labels for identification. There are over 30,000 camellia cultivars world-wide. Be sure the plant you buy is suited to your location. Many are not. Ask when the plant will bloom in your area, and for how long. Each plant has a well-defined blooming time. Avoid those blooming after March. If the plant is intended for "landscape" ask if the blooms are "upright". Each cultivar has a well-defined growth habit. Some columnar, some lacy, some sprawling, some vigorous, some Bonsai-like. Choose according to suitability. Camellia shows are held each weekend from January to March in California. Look at show blooms during the time you desire flowering. It will help your decision. Ask the exhibitor for advice, which will be given freely. Remember that a healthy camellia can be grafted with any other cultivar if your taste changes. But, don't settle for someone else's taste. CAMELLIA CARE Camellias don't like wet soil or strong fertilizer, and the roots need air. Soil should be coarse. Keep the surface bare if possible, so dead blooms can be cleared easily. ALWAYS EXCHANGE THE LAYER OF SOIL FROM THE SURFACE OF NEWLY ACQUIRED PLANTS. This is to rid the surface of "petal blight" fungus, to avoid infection. THROW SOIL AWAY. Fertilize only after the soil has been thoroughly watered. Non-retic hybrids should have % the fertilizer of other camellias. AVOID "HOT" FERTILIZER. Too much fertilizer burns roots and leaves and will kill the plant. Do not use regular fertilizer during the "dormant" season (Sept to Mar) Fertilizer suggestion: (modify as experience in your garden reveals) 1 tbsp/gal fish emulsion, plus one handful cottonseed meal, at sign of growth. (Easter) One handful cottonseed meal about June. (Memorial Day) One handful cottonseed meal about July. (Independence Day) NOTE: Magnum Grow 1 tbsp/gal OK for substitute fertilizer. Optional: 2-10-10 fertilizer in October (not necessary but helps show-flowers). Camellias requiring "shade" can be left in full sun except in July and Aug. Many camellias do best in full sun. Check with nurseryman. ALWAYS CHECK LABEL BEFORE APPLYING ANY CHEMICAL TO CAMELLIAS. NURSERIES SOMETIMES WILL TELL YOU WRONGLY. PRUNING Camellias grow better if pruned in March. Treat them like fruit trees. Prune so sunlight gets to trunk and branches, for best flowers and growth control. Avoid shearing camellias. Shearing destroys the buds. POT CULTURE Camellias will grow indefinitely in pots. Do not repot until needing water more than twice a week. Too large a pot kills the roots. Use "azalea" (squat) pots for best roots. TRANSPLANTATION Camellias grown commercially have no tap roots. They transplant easily, preferably during dormancy (Sept to Mar). FORCING FLOWERING Blooms may be individually forced at any time after September with "GIB". Such flowers are "treated". CAMELLIA PESTS Gophers can be frustrated by leaving the plant in the pot when planted. Other animals will not eat camellias. Spider mites will attack leaves but cannot usually cause much damage. Mites can only be controlled with Kelthane (now again on the market for home use) Aphids sometimes will appear on new leaves but may be pinched off by fingers. CAMELLIA DISEASES Principal disease in this area is "cinnamon root rot", promoted by over-watering. It can be treated with "SUBDUE", applied as a soil drench twice a year (spring & fall), at 4 DROPS per gallon of water. Principal flower disfigurement is "flower blight", caused solely by airborne spores from a specific mushroom (usually occurring after first rain and thereafter) . It can be treated only by licensed application of PCNB, killing all vegetation, but it is prevented entirely by picking up fallen blossoms. Other diseases do not affect camellias in Southern California, due to the climate. CAMELLIA PROPAGATION All camellias EXCEPT Retics may be propagated froth cuttings. Only a few camellias are restricted by plant patents. Seeds of virus-variegated camellias do not contain the virus. Seeds don't reproduce the parents. Formal-double camellias will not bear seeds. Some camellias (e.g, Mathotiana) will not produce seed but have viable pollen. Seed capsules should be picked while green, before they open, usually near Sept 1. The capsules will then open in several days and the seeds should be planted immediately. Planting medium for seeds and cuttings should be damp, coarse vermiculite or perlite. Use only distilled water and do not re-use planting medium. Use hormone on cuttings. Graft scions in Feb or Mar, using cleft graft. Match cambium to cambium, secure and keep covered until graft heals. If you want to change one of your camellias, don't dig it up, just graft it. All camellia people donate scions freely. Do not be surprised if someone takes scions from your plants. "GIBBING" ("TREATING") Individual blossoms are forced and enhanced by "gibbing" (treating with a salt of Gibberellic Acid). Common salts are ammonia-dissolved gibberellic acid (ammonium gibberellate) and "pro-gibb" (potassium gibberellate). One gram of "gib" is usually enough for several years. The shelf life, mixed, is indefinite, but usually it is best kept refrigerated. To "gib": twist or bend off the leaf bud next to flower bud. Put a drop of "gib" into the "cup" left after the leaf bud is removed. That bud will respond, but none other will. Response depends on weather. VARIEGATION Variegation may be introduced into any cultivar, but cannot thereafter be removed. Variegation makes white spots in the petals, and often yellow marks in the leaves. AVOID VARIEGATED PLANTS HAVING NATURALLY WHITE BLOSSOMS. Check leaves for absence of variegation. To variegate, graft a variegated scion onto some part of the plant, or keep scion bound in contact with cambium for a week or two at minimum.

Camellia Reference

Nothing beats the paperback GARDENING WITH CAMELLIAS, by Jim Rolfe, $25 plus $3 s/h from ACS (see other sheet). This gorgeous book tells you EVERYTHING. EVERY serious gardener should own it! CAMELLIA INFORMATION The best subscription value is the CAMELLIA REVIEW, by the Southern Calif. Camellia Society. Annually $25, you also get the right to purchase the nomenclature 'bible' for only $12. The nomenclature 'bible' is the equivalent of Modern Roses. GIBBERELLIC ACID POWDER When you order Rolfe's book from ACS, get some "ACS GIB" and experiment with it. You will enjoy it