Cooperative Living October 2019 - 30

GardenMuse | Story and photos by Paula Steers Brown, Contributing Columnist
Camellia
T
The Versatile
he camellia's refined blossoms rival the exquisite beauty of roses, but
its handsome, glossy foliage is evergreen and its blooms are prized for
coming in fall and winter when flowers are rare. The shrub's variety of
shapes and sizes offer versatility in the landscape and in containers. They
belong to the family Theaceae, of which Camellia sinensis is famous as the
" tea plant. " Perhaps the best-known garden variety is C. japonica (meaning
" Japanese " ), the stalwart shrub long beloved in the South that can bloom
from early winter to late spring. Camellia sasanqua, the generally smaller
jewel of autumn, has gained importance and popularity. Flowering from
October through December, it is not as likely to be damaged by cold and is
less picky about soil conditions and sun exposure. Hardy hybrids can
withstand temperatures below zero with some shelter from winter sun and
wind, so there are ever-expanding ways to garb the fall and winter garden in
unexpected glamour.
The ornamental value of camellias in the landscape is remarkable. They
perform beautifully as woodland plantings. Since their native habitat is the
wooded hills of China and Japan, they are ideal understory plants to tall trees,
especially pines whose natural litter of needles supplies a nice protective
mulch of the acid flavor they enjoy. They can also be standouts in the open
garden as tree-like specimens, as shrubbery in beds or borders, or as informal
hedges or screens for a year-round solid wall of glossy greenery that luckily
deer don't seem to munch. Branches can be upright or lax, offering even
more versatile options. They can be clipped to create formal avenues next to
paved walks or lax ones can grow freely to form romantic camellia tunnels.
The varieties of a more sprawling habit can even be used as lustrous ground
cover. The stems are pliable and ideal to espalier or train flat against a wall or
fence. Lower branches can be completely removed, training the trunks into
standards to look like giant lollipops or the Queen of Hearts' topiaries in
Alice's Wonderland.
Some gardeners like to prune large C. japonicas into multi-trunks like a
typical crepe myrtle. Removing the lowest branches encourages upright growth.
Conversely, lanky C. sasanquas can be
made bushier by cutting their tops. Prune
japonicas after they bloom and sasanquas
in early spring before buds form, making
the cut just above a scar that marks last
year's growth. The rewards of becoming a
branch manager are great. Disbudding is a
practice where several buds are carefully
removed from a cluster, leaving about two
buds to each end so that the plant's energy
will go into making fewer but much larger
blooms. If you aspire to show-quality
perfection, leave only one bud to each
terminal. These buxom beauties can be
The shrub's
variety of shapes
and sizes offer
versatility in the
landscape and
in containers.
entered in camellia shows or left on the shrub to dazzle the neighborhood.
Smaller camellias are candidates for containers. Try 22- to 24-inch pots and instead
28 | Cooperative Living | October 2019
Camellia Winter's Joy.
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Cooperative Living October 2019

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