Handbook

For Growing
Ornamental
Flowering
Camellias
CamelliaShop.com
PO Box 13987
Savannah, GA 31416
Email: info@camelliashop.com
Visit us online at
Www.CamelliaShop.com

Your ultimate online
source for Fine Quality
Camellias

From our
Garden to
Yours!

Camellias are evergreen shrubs and trees that are native to
China, Japan and Southeast Asia. They adorn our gardens and
homes with bountiful blooms during the fall and winter months
when all other blooming plants are fast asleep.

Camellias made their way to America in the 18th century. In
fact, some camellias still exist today from this time period mak-
ing this truly a species of historic nature. Once grown only as
greenhouse flowers in the colder regions such as Boston and
Philadelphia, these beauties have found their place in southern
gardens and southern hearts from Virginia, to South Carolina,
Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana all the way to the
West coast in Oregon , Washington and California.

CamelliaShop is mail order only. We do not operate a retail
nursery. We invite you to visit CamelliaShop.com online and
begin to explore all of the great varieties we have as well as
detailed information we have on each variety. Youll also find
growing tips, techniques and much much more as you begin
your camellia journey.

At CamelliaShop we have been growing camellias for over 50
years! We are a family owned and operated business and we
truly love what we do. Camellias inspire us, intrigue and mys-
tify us with their beauty and elegance. But most importantly,
they make us want to share what we do and what we love with
gardeners everywhere!

We specialize in all types of camellias, both the ornamental
blooming species as well as Camellia sinensis, The Tea Plant.

We grow all of our own camellias from our own stock. No bro-
kers, no middlemen. We grow them, we ship them and we
stand by them. Our camellias come straight from our hands
into yours. And were there for you after they become yours. If
you need help or advice on your plants, were here for you.
Please feel free to contact us at any time!

The CamelliaShop Family




Table of Contents


On the cover from top to bottom.

Camellia japonica Black Magic, Camellia hybrid
Cinnamon Scentsation, Camellia sasanqua Leslie
Ann, Camellia sinensis, Camellia hybrid Fragrant
Pink, Camellia japonica Tudor Baby, Camellia japon-
ica Seafoam
The Queen of Ornamentals 3
The Many uses of Camellias 5
All in the Camellia Family 9
Camellia Japonica 12
Camellia Hybrids 14
Camellia Sasanqua 16
Camellia Sinensis 18
Fragrant Camellias 19
Cold Hardy Camellias 22
USDA Climate Zone Map 25
Planting Camellias Outdoors 26
Planting in Climates 28
Growing Camellias in Containers 29
Fertilizing your Camellias 30
Water, Humidity & Mulching 31
Soil pH for Camellia Cultivation 32
Growing Camellias Indoors 32
Camellia Insects Disease & Pests 33
Treating for Scale & Mites 35
Camellia Flower Forms 38

Camellias
The Queen of Ornamentals
For centuries, the camellia has adorned gardens, tables and la-
pels with their beauty, grace and charm, but how did they come
to be and what makes them so special?

Camellias are evergreen ornamental shrubs that produce a wide
variety of blooms. There are hundreds of thousands of varieties
world wide that have been officially named and logged, and
probably equally as many that have not. So, what makes the
camellia special?

Camellias are different than any other ornamental shrub. They
bloom in the fall and winter, for the most part, when all other
plants are sleeping. There are no thorns or sticky sap to deal
with and they can grow for hundreds of years with minimal care
once they become established. The colors, shapes, sizes and
bloom times of flowers vary greatly with almost every color but
bluebut thats a dream that hopefully will be attained at some
point in the future. Some have fragrance, some have unusual
growth habits such as low and spreading to upright and tree
form. Some camellias have fragrance, while others do not.
They can grow in most any mild climate and with the develop-
ment of new cold tolerant camellias, now can be grown in areas
where they once did not survive. They can be planted outdoors
in mild climates or they can be grown in containers. They have
been used as specimen plantings, hedges, foundation plantings
& screens. Their
addition to the gar-
den is one that can
be enjoyed for years
and years to come.

The first mention of
camellia in history is
that of Camellia
sinensis, or as we
call, the tea plant.
Over the centuries,
camellia sinensis has
become the source
for the worlds sec-
ond most consumed
beverage next to
waterTEA. Legend has that around 5000 b.c. a Chinese
monk, tired and weary from his work, began a pot of soup but
before he could add ingredients, leaves from a nearby tree blew
into his brew and as he tasted it, he instantly felt refreshed.
After a cup of tea, you can understand why this beverage has
remained throughout the centuries.

The first records of ornamental camellias other than tea plants
date back nearly 2000 years ago in Chinese literature and in
artwork. Writings and paintings describe clearly Camellia ja-
ponica in its natural statesimple and single. Camellia sasan-
qua is noted to be native from
Japan. Camellias, first found
in temples and in the places of
noblemen, soon made its way
into the gardens of commoners
or those of lesser nobility.
China, Japan and Southeast
Asia are thought to hold the
nativity of camellias, in one
form or another.

Camellias slowly made their
way from their native home-
Camellia sinensis Tea Plant
Camellias as Huntington Gardens in California

lands into other areasEurope, Australia, New Zealand and
North America. Each of these regions have climates within
their borders that are suitable for growing camellias, and in
some areas they have thrived since the early part of the 18th
century.
The first camellias brought into North America were in the lat-
ter 1700s and were sent to Savannah, Georgia. These were
seeds of Camellia sinensis and were sent to the Trust Gardens
in the hopes that tea could be established here as an agricultural
crop. For many reason, the tea did not survive and it would be
some time before it could be established again, this time in
Charleston South Carolina.

Camellia japonica soon arrived to North America and it was
certainly a plant species for the rich and wealthy, often grown
in glass greenhouses in the north because the winters were too
harsh. It wasnt long before Camellias made their way down
south to antebellum gardens underneath Live Oaks trees drip-
ping in Spanish moss and they found a climate very suitable for
their culture. Some of the oldest camellias today can be found
in these old plantation gardens such as Magnolia Gardens in
Charleston South Carolina - the souths first romantic garden.
Middleton Place, also in Charleston SC is home to a formal
garden bursting with camellias, simple in form, that stand ma-
jestically on the banks of the Ashley River. Camellia fever
spread to all parts of the country and to the gardens of simple
folk as well as the noble plantation owners. The latter part of
the 19th century and the first part of the 20th century there was
a camellia boom of sorts and everyone was planting, sharing
and developing some of the most beautiful camellias that we
have today.

As part of the Camellia boom that hit, Camellia shows began
springing up in the 1930s and 1940s and was a site to see, as
they still are today. People would come from everywhere,
bringing in baskets full of camellias to present for exhibition -
sometimes thousands at a time. Years ago, The Mens Garden
Club in Savannah GA reported at one of their shows, over 5000
blooms entered into competition. During this time Camellia
clubs developed and people who appreciated the flower, all
became members and most of these sponsored camellia shows
to engage in friendly and sometimes not-so-friendly competi-
tion. Today there are hundreds of camellia organizations with
membership in just about every city and country that grows
camellias around the world.

Camellias have certainly come a long way from their humble,
single form beginnings and in a relatively short period of time.
With the advancements in hybridizing, new varieties and possi-
bilities are emerging every day. Blue camellias? Summer
blooming camellias? Why not! Its all possible and hopefully
something you will see in the future!
Camellia reticulate Milo Rowel planted in Magnolia Gar-
dens in Charleston.
Jim Parker , Savannah Park and Tree, stands beneath the
camellia which is nearly 20 feet tall.
A beautiful display of flowers in a Camellia Show Entry.
Just imagine thousands of blooms in one place!

We refer to camellias as the Queen of Ornamentals.
That is mainly because there is no other shrub that can
offer the varying characteristics in foliage, flowers, bloom
season and grow habits.

There are many applications to using camellias in your
gardens and outdoor spaces as well as indoors. The
most common use is to just place them in a spot they
love and watch them grow! Some of the oldest camel-
lias, and the largest we have seen, are located in the
heart of the south where some camellias have been dated
for over 200 years. There are other gardens around the
world where they are much older than that. Camellias
can be used in a variety of garden types from formal to
oriental type garden, or just to simply brighten up a spot
in the yard where you frequently visit.

Large Growing Trees

Large growing varieties can be transform into trees in
most cases. Some can reach heights of 20 tall and 10-12
feet wide or better. Camellias grown for this purpose will
need a lot of room to fully reach their potential. Some of
the most beautiful camellias in the world are enormous in
height. Since they can live for hundreds of years, it is
certainly worth the effort to see them in their natural
form.

The Many Uses of Camellias

Varieties that are excellent for tree-camellias are:

C. japonica Sea Foam C. japonica Rebel Yell C. japonica High Society C. japonica Omega
C. hiemalis Kanjiro C. sasanqua Pink Snow C. sasanqua Royal Velvet
Large growing tree-form Camellia japonica

Camellias for privacy or screening

Flowering Camellias make very nice hedges or screens,
especially the large growing varieties. They are ever-
green and most of them dense growing which allows not
only for privacy but very pleasing to look at! For plant-
ing hedges you may want to plant a little closer together
for a filled in look. They can be used for large screens or
for short maintained hedges along small fences or court-
yards.


Excellent varieties for screening or
hedges:

C. japonica High Society C. hiemalis Kanjiro
C. sasanqua hybrid Winters Star
C. sasanqua hybrid Winters Charm
C. japonica Omega C. japonica Cilie Sutton
C. hybrid High Fragrance C. hybrid Hallstone Spicey
C. hybrid Spring Festival
C. japonica Christmas Beauty

Low Growing Camellias &
Foundation Plantings

Low growing camellias can be used in places almost as a
ground cover type of planting. Some can be maintained
at 2 or better and tend to spread out. Lower growing
camellias that can be used in places with height restric-
tions are:

Camellias can be used as foundation plantings, or for a
focal point in plantings around your home or other build-
ings. They are commonly used to provide pockets of
color in your landscape and even without blooms, the
plants fit very nicely into this type of planting.

Even with low growing, pruning will be required to main-
tain size your desired size


Low Growing Camellias

C. hybrid Sweet Emily Kate

C. sasanqua Mine-no-yuki

C. hiemalis Yuletide

C. japonica Marie Bracey

C. japonica Dahlohnega

C, hybrid Winters Dream

C. japonica Frankie Winn


Espalier Or Trellised

Another very desirable use for Camellias, especially Ca-
mellia sasanqua or sasanqua types, is Espalier. This
ancient horticultural practice formerly trains woody plants
along a trellis or other flat surface. It is especially nice
along a fence, or even a huge blank wall. In the picture
to the right, this Camellia sasanqua is being trained with
the use of eye bolts and wires or string to secure the
plant to the wall.

Containers and Planters

And finally, they make absolutely perfect container or
planter garden plants. They can be grown in almost any
type of container that drains properly. They can be
grown outdoors in mild climates, and indoors in cooler
climates. They can be grown on patios, porches, under
gazebos or just in your garden along a pathway. Fra-
grant camellias grown in containers lend just the right
touch to your outdoor living spaces! Some varieties can
also be grown for Bonsaian ancient form of art where
plants are pruned to produce compact plants and flowers.

The choices are unlimited when you grow camellias and
there is a camellia for almost every application you can
think of. Youll soon see why they are truly the Queen
of Ornamentals
Top: Espalier Camellia sasanqua
Middle: Camellia reticulata hybrid grown in a clay pot
Bottom : Camellias grown in containers for Bonsai
Left: Camellias in raised planters

All in the Camellia
Family

By Debbie Odom

I spent a few days in Washington DC and toured many of the
Smithsonian Museums. Our favorite of all was the Natural
History Museum. We viewed many different exhibits on the
worlds history including the origins of plant life. I was so in-
trigued with all of this information. It was like I was seeing it
for the first time. Somehow I chose to forget what I had
learned from my 10
th
grade biology classes. It began a thought
process on the origins of the Camellia and how it is classified in
the plant world the way it is.

Taxonomy and biological classification
Carolus Linnaeus, and 18
th
century Swedish botanist, is respon-
sible for most of the worlds classification of plants and ani-
mals, otherwise known as Taxonomy. Although the naming of
plants and animals is an age-old habit, Linnaeus system of
taxonomy remains today as the most widely used method for
plant and animal classification.

Linnaeus was an arrogant but highly intelligent botanist. He
was not modest to tell people later in life that 'no man has ever
transformed science in the way that I have.' He published a
book called Species Plantarum in 1753. This book contained a
listing of all plants known to him at that time and was the
worlds first plant encyclopedia. This book completely
changed the way plants were named.

Linnaeus designed a two word plant name system that we still
use today. This type of name is called binomial meaning
having two names. We often refer to this as the botanical
name. The first name is to indicate the genus and is always
capitalized. The second is to indicate the species and is always
listed with a small letter. For example, Camellia japonica -
Camellia is the genus and japonica indicates the species. Lin-
naeus went one step further. He allowed for the name of the
person that developed the plant to follow the species. For ex-
ample Camellia japonica L or Camellia japonica Linnaeus, as
he often abbreviated. Today this further classification after
the species name is often used to describe a variety, or a seed-
ling or cultivar of a particular species. Commonly used are
names in honor of someone, or specific name to distinguish the
variety or cultivar. For example, Camellia japonica Pink Per-
fection, or Camellia hiemalis Yuletide

Linnaeus loved naming plants after people he admired. He
named the genus Magnolia after the French botanist Pierre
Magnol and the Camellia after Josef Kamel, a fellow botanist.
Linnaeus also was a vindictive man and named plants after peo-
Carlolus Linnaeus