How to grow or plant Camellias
The Camellia plant, the tea plant, is a beautiful evergreen shrub with dark green foliage and delicate blossoms.
While most everyone enjoys looking at the Camellia's flowers - and many enjoys the tea that the plant produces - some are a bit put off thinking that growing the Camellia plant is difficult. Not so! The Camellia plant is actually quite easy to grow, you just need to know where and how your Camellias will thrive.
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Things You'll Need
- Camellia Plants
- Gardening Tools
- A pot or garden to plant your Camellia plants in
Instructions
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The absolute key to success when it comes to growing Camellias is the soil that the Camellia plant is grown in. The soil must be slightly acidic or neutral and never alkaline.
Testing your soil prior to planting Camellias; or any plant, is a very crucial first step to the success of your garden. To learn more about how to test the acidity of your soil:
http://www.ehow.com/how_4891130_test-acidity-of-soil.htmlYour location is also an important factor when it comes to growing specific plants. Camellias prefer the climate that is found in Southeast and parts of the West Coast as far north as Seattle.
If your soil is alkaline, you can still grown and enjoy Camellias. Instead of planting them directly in the ground, raise them in pots, in raised beds, or in trenches that you've filled with leaf mold. You can even plant some acid-loving Azaleas and Rhododendrons along side your Camellias.
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Upkeep on your plants are very important. In the winter elements, you'll need to shelter the bush from frost, wind, and full on sun.
If you suspect that your plant has frost damage, take a look at the plant. Are there any leaves remaining? If there are no leaves left there is little to no chance in saving the plant. But if there are some plants left, prune severely above all of the healthy branches.
Mulching in the spring and fall time is also a great idea. Using a nice, thick layer of well-aged compost about 6 inches thick. When the plant buds and flowers out, add ammonium sulfate at the rate of 3/4 ounce per square yard every 3 weeks. Be very careful not to over fertilize. Over fertilizing can burn the plant up - killing it.
Keep in mind that potted plants are much more sensitive to the cold and Camellias are more vulnerable than most plants because of their shallow roots. Extra care must be taking with potted Camellias. When winter arrives, wrap the pots with thick plastic bubble wrap, many sheets of newspaper, or burlap. If it's particularly cold, you should consider bringing the plant indoors or into a well-lighted solarium.
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The way in which you water your Camellias will also affect the way that they grow and produce.In midsummer, water the plants from above. Camellias thrive in high - humidity.
Encourage flower bud formations by slowing down watering in September, moistening just the soil and using lime-free water. -
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Camellias can also be preserved for as long as a month by running a length of thread through the center of their blossoms and dipped into 145 degree paraffin for only a couple of seconds. Place them face down onto a couple of paper towels folded together and allow them to cool.
Pull out the thread and float the flowers in a shallow bowl of water. You can even add a bit of food coloring and floral perfume to enhance the effects in the water.
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Tips & Warnings
Testing your soils acidity is very important.
Resources
- Photo Credit www.photobucket.com
