I treasure fleeting moments in the garden , but I sometimes remember that not much else seems as momentaneous as the blooming and attenuation of camellia flower . After months and months of watching the buds well up and lie down in hold back all through the fall and wintertime , my camellias seem to bloom and fade in the nictitation of an optic .
Nevertheless , establish camelia is still worth it in my Good Book because of how early in the year they blossom .
In my cervix of the woods , the only flowers that concur with that of camellias are snowdrop , hellebores and crocuses . So when everything else is still in a deep sleep , camellias are all present and account for .
Camellia flowers in quick succession, usually starting on the sunny side of the shrub.
camellia are not high - maintenance shrub ( quite the contrary ) . But as busy gardeners , we might succumb to the disposition to block about their existence in the humdrum of the other horticulture time of year . It ’s a distinctive case of out of plenty , out of mind , once the flowers are gone .
Here ’s what you should do for your camellias after they have bloom to set up yourself up for even heavy and better blooms next yr .
( And if big and safe blooms from your camelia is your goal – then you ’ll need to read my guide:8 Secrets To Get Your Camellia To Bloom Like Crazy )
1. Keep your camellia on a consistent watering schedule
With their glossy evergreen foliage and their sturdy root word , camellias calculate like tough plant life . And they are pretty bouncy shrubs . But if you ’re consider on a novel set of peak next wintertime , you ask to keep watering your camellias through seasons of drought . That ’s because camelia will be mold buds this summer . So verify the plant is hydrated enough to set as many buds as potential is really important .
Another thing to keep in mind is that , just likerhododendrons , camellias do n’t send out very deep beginning . They do rely on an intricate ascendant structure , but most of it stays quite near to the surface . So make certain that the sinewy tooth root system that the shrub bank on for piss and nutrient consumption actually has access to water .
If you usually have pretty wet spring , then that should be enough . But the springs where I garden have been getting drier and siccative . In fact , this year we ’ve had one of the driest February month on phonograph record .
Camellia flowers in quick succession, usually starting on the sunny side of the shrub.
Just keep an eye on the weather and supplement your camelia with enough urine if you ’re not getting enough rain . Make a note to irrigate your camellia at least once a hebdomad on teetotal weeks in the spring .
2. Mulch your camellia (Yes, again!)
But I already mulch in the fall . Should I do it again in fountain ?
Yes , you ’d better !
The mulch that you implement in the spring might still be visible . But depend on what you used , it may have been taken into the priming by hungry worm ( foliage stamp is a delicacy ) , blown away by the idle words ( wood chip commonly stick out this fate ) or merely been press by rainfall and snowfall .
Even the golden faded camellia blooms have their charm.
In any case , fall mulch has done its duty of preventing filth compaction or runoff and keeping an even temperature around the root testicle .
I care to refer to mulch as a nurseryman ’s secret weapon . mulch your camelia bush in the spring will , first of all , help retain the water in the primer coat . It ’s not just drouth that interfere with bud setting . But the fluctuation between too ironic and too fuddled can also work havoc on next flowers . That ’s where mulch saves the twenty-four hour period by acting as a humidness regulator .
The way I use it , mulch serves a lowly determination in spring . I choose to mulch with acid materials ( this class , it ’s pine phonograph needle ) in ordering to increase the acidulousness in the soil . In their aboriginal habitat , camelia grow in a plentiful and acidic soil , often on hill slopes under pine trees . So replicating this in our garden will ensure healthy , lush shrubs .
A fluctuation in soil humidity might interfere with next year’s bloom formation.
3. You can prune your camellia, but only to shape it.
I ’ll get this piece of advice with a disavowal : camellias are slow - growing shrubs that do n’t really need cut back . Not in the sense that other shrubs do , anyway . As long as you ’ve transplanted your camellia in an exposed location when you first bring it home , you should n’t have to give it a passementerie for years .
However , if you need to influence the shape of the bush more than female parent nature does , you could do some light rationalize in the spring . That is , if you need to grow your camelia from a shrub to a Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree - shape , you may reduce back one of the low-down arm in ordination to encourage vertical growth .
On the other paw , if you prefer your camellia more corpulent and full ( that ’s my preference ) , you may bring down the errant growth at the top . Just cut back off the branch that sticks out higher from the others , cutting correctly above a node .
Camellia has shallow roots that extend as far as the drip line, so water widely around the plant.
In either scenario , you should deflect drastic pruning ( even for the sake of contouring ) . programme to stagger your pruning over a few age in purchase order to leave your plant enough time to recover .
Remember that the pruning window is not capable for very long with camellias . Depending on what cultivar you ’re growing , camellia might start typeset next winter ’s bud as betimes as mid - summer So do n’t wait too long before your prune . you could do it as soon as this year ’s flush are run . However , if your camellia is a really ahead of time - flowering variety , wait until the last expected rime day of the month has travel by .
What to do with fallen camellia flowers
Camellias bloom so early in the season that they are often damage by frost , gamy winds or heavy rainwater that get the heyday to drop to the ground . But what should you do with this carpeting of blow over flowers ?
The best affair to do is compost them but only if they show no signs of disease . Camellia blooms can sometimes suffer a fungous disease call camellia petal blight . shabu flowers that showany signsand compost the tidy looking blooms .
What you do with your camellia after flowering will localize you up for success next flower season .
Clear ground may look pleasing to the eye, but it’s not how nature does things.
Read Next:
What To Do With Daffodils After Flowering
I mulch with pine needles in order to increase the acidity of the soil around my camellias.
Camelia ‘Masayoshi’ is one of the varieties that can be shaped into a tree.
I cut back three tall branches in order to keep my camellia compact.
