Home » Plants & Animals » Gardening in B.C. » Camellias - The Roses of Spring

Camellias - The Roses of Spring

© Susan Ward

The flowers of Camellia are one of the few that rival the beauty of hybrid tea rose blooms. But Camellias, unlike hybrid tea roses, bloom in early spring, giving your garden a display of breath-taking beauty when the roses are just forming their new leaves. Add to that the fact that Camellias have glossy evergreen foliage, making them attractive shrubs all year round, and like an acidy soil, and you can see why Camellias are so popular in the Pacific Northwest garden.

A few blocks from my home is a house that I always make a point of walking by in the spring. One entire side of the house is covered by a camellia that in turn is covered with huge pink blooms each spring. Like climbing roses, camellias grow vertically as well as horizontally; the different varieties grow anywhere from 3 to 25 feet tall, so it's wise to know exactly what type of camellia you're planting and site it accordingly.

You also need to select your Camellia carefully because Camellias are sensitive to cold. While many cultivars are suitable to zones 7 - 8, the American Camellia Society recommends growing only early and late-flowering varieties in cooler climates such as ours, because mid-season blooming varieties are most likely to experience the most freezing temperatures. The leaves and twigs of Camellias are much hardier than their flowers or partially open buds!

Camellia flowers come in several different forms, ranging from the elegant open-faced single through the formal double, which always remind me of dahlias. Most camellias have blooms that are some shade of white or red. I have a particular fondness for the mixed colours, such as 'Carter's Sunburst', which has large, peony form pale pink flowers striped with deep pink. Yellow forms are rarer, which is one reason I prize my 'Jury's Yellow' Camellia so much. Suite 101's California Gardening Editor Keith Muraoka provides more information on the different varieties of Camellias in his article "Camellias: The Princess of the Garden".

Whichever Camellia you choose will need well-drained, slightly acid soil and a site with partial shade. Camellias planted in sites with too much sun may develop sun scald or yellow leaves. You should also make sure the site you choose is out of the wind, one of the worst plant enemies here on the coast. These shrubs prefer the soil to be kept moist (but not soggy!) at all times. Plant your Camellia near the top of the soil, and fertilize in the spring following flowering. The American Camellia Society has a step-by-step list of planting instructions.