How to Transplant a Camellia Japonica Bush

Camellias are evergreen shrubs sometimes grown as standards. Camellias thrive in the same conditions as rhododendrons or azaleas and are often planted with them in home landscapes. In mild climates, camellias will bloom in winter, adding color to an otherwise bare garden. Camellia japonica is a spring bloomer that does well in mild climates. It can be planted in cold climate areas if given winter protection. Shell pink April Blush or white April Snow are two japonicas that are cold-hardy and worth a try in the Northeast. Careful planting and initial care of your camellia japonica will provide years of beautiful bloom.

Things You'll Need

• Soil test kit
• Root pruning shovel
• Burlap and garden twine
• Wheelbarrow
• Compost
• Sand
• Dolomitic lime (optional)
• Ferrous sulfate (optional)
• Stakes and soft tie material

Instructions

Select the Planting Site

1. Select a site that has morning or afternoon sun, or filtered light all day. Camellia japonica is susceptible to sunburn and drying out during long, hot days.

2. Avoid frost pockets and low spots where cold air will pool. Site tender camellias on slightly sloping land to prevent radiation heat loss and frost damage.

3. Avoid planting in long, narrow areas with east-west winds, or provide a windbreak.

Prepare the Soil

1. Test the soil pH with a soil testing kit from a garden store or take soil in to your local university extension to be tested. Check for a pH range of 5.5 to 6.5; camellias like slightly acid soil.

2. Buy dolomitic lime at a garden center or nursery and add to the soil according to the manufacturer's directions to raise the pH. Buy and apply ferrous sulfate to lower the pH.

3. Test your soil for drainage by digging a 16-inch hole and filling it with water. Wait until it has drained, then fill it again. Check the hole in 11/2 to 2 hours. If the water has not drained add compost or sand to the soil for drainage.

4. Amend soil by mixing two parts compost and one part sand to one part soil from the planting site.

5. Water the planting site well the day before putting your camellia in to make it easy to dig.

Dig an Established Camellia

1. Dig established camellias for transplanting in the early spring before the buds swell. Dig the camellia on the day you plan to re-plant it.

2. Sever any roots outside the drip line according to the experts at Camellia Grove Nursery in their 2009 article, "Moving Camellias." Make a circle around the tree using a sharp root pruning shovel pushed in full length.

3. Mark the north side of the camellia so that it can be oriented in the same direction when re-planted. Mark the trunk at the soil line to avoid setting it too deeply in the new planting hole.

4. Dig a trench about 1 foot wide and 1 1/2 to 2 feet deep around the root pruning circle to form a basic root ball. Work around the camellia root ball in the bottom of the trench using the pruning shovel. Push it under the root ball at an angle to separate the root ball from the soil.

5. Lift the camellia carefully onto clean moist burlap and wrap the root ball. Use a wheelbarrow or skid to move camellias to their new sites.

Plant the Camellia

1. Dig a planting hole I inch shorter than and three times as wide as the root ball of your camellia japonica. Make a small mound in the center of the hole for the root ball to rest on.

2. Remove a purchased camellia from its nursery pot. Lay the pot on its side, tapping to loosen the root ball, and sliding the camellia gently out. Remove burlap from ball-and-burlap camellias.

3. Put the camellia in the planting hole and check to be sure the top of the root ball is at least 1 inch above the surrounding soil level. Raise or lower the mound under the camellia to bring it to that height. Spread the roots of your camellia japonica gently in the planting hole.

4. Fill the hole with soil, firming by hand as you go. Stamping or agitating with a shovel to firm the soil can break the feeder roots.

5. Build a berm for watering as wide as the drip line of the camellia. Fill it with water and if the soil settles add more and firm it in.

6. Water camellias slowly and deeply, once a week when the soil is dry. Remove a small piece of the berm when rainy weather comes for better drainage.

Staking Standard Camellias

1. Stake top-heavy camellia japonicas or those grown as standards (on a single stem with growth at the top like a tree).

2. Drive two stakes in on either side of the camellia at the drip line at right angles to the usual wind direction. (If wind is east-west stakes will be north-south.)

3. Loop a length of sheeting or rolled cheesecloth around one stake, out and around the camellia, and back to the stake. Secure by tying to the stake. Repeat on the other side.

4. Check to make sure your camellia is not rigid but that it won't move so far it can fall over.

Tips & Warnings

• An easy way to amend soil is to spread a 4-inch layer of compost over it and dig it in.

• Use a row of evergreens like thuja pyramidalis as a windbreak for large plantings of camellia japonicas.

• Use garden wire for staking only if the camellia stem is cushioned with soft material inside the wire. Wind movement can rub the bark off the stem if the wire is bare.

• Avoid man-made wounds caused by weed-eating or mowing too closely around your camellias. According to Joe Whetsell, M.D., Smith County Master Gardener in his 2009 bulletin, "Camellias," these cuts allow fungus to enter. If your camellias wilt suddenly and begin to die back, look for a canker with reddish-orange spores surrounding it.

References

• Camellia Care and Culture
• Camellia Culture for Home Gardeners
• Camellia Culture

Resources

• Planting and Transplanting Garden Shrubs
• Moving Established Camellias
• Transplanting Camellias