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Can I save my Camellia?
NewGardener2021
Posts: 14
Hi all, complete novice here but I do try to do my due diligence and research my plants before purchase - I never buy things on a whim (as much as I want to sometimes!).
At the end of 2021 I purchased a Camellia japonica, 'Adolph Audusson'. I'd read that it was a particularly hardy variety, and that it could live in a pot (I rent, so 90% of my plants are in containers!).
I potted it up with ericaceous compost and mulched it with bark. It has been watered exclusively with rainwater, and I fed it with ericaceous plant food a few times after it finished flowering. I'd read you shouldn't feed them after July, so I didn't!
It has been positioned at the back of the house - which looks out north-west. It's shady here, with some very late afternoon/evening sun - I'd read they shouldn't get morning sun due to the risk of bud damage when it's frosty.
I didn't prune it at any point, because I wasn't really sure how - it's only a little plant and everything I read seemed to apply to big 'ole bushes.
Of course it flowered nicely last spring, when it was new and shiny:
However, after a year in my care, it's deeply unhappy.
It didn't flower at all - buds formed but never opened and dried out. I can't see that this constitutes mere 'bullnosing' - there's something more going on for sure. All the leaves are drooping. Some look moth-eaten. It's generally unhealthy and I don't know how to diagnose it.
My questions are:
1. What have I done wrong so far?
2. Is it saveable right now? What do I do?!
Please help! Thank you so much in advance for any advice you can give me. I really want to save this little plant!
At the end of 2021 I purchased a Camellia japonica, 'Adolph Audusson'. I'd read that it was a particularly hardy variety, and that it could live in a pot (I rent, so 90% of my plants are in containers!).
I potted it up with ericaceous compost and mulched it with bark. It has been watered exclusively with rainwater, and I fed it with ericaceous plant food a few times after it finished flowering. I'd read you shouldn't feed them after July, so I didn't!
It has been positioned at the back of the house - which looks out north-west. It's shady here, with some very late afternoon/evening sun - I'd read they shouldn't get morning sun due to the risk of bud damage when it's frosty.
I didn't prune it at any point, because I wasn't really sure how - it's only a little plant and everything I read seemed to apply to big 'ole bushes.
Of course it flowered nicely last spring, when it was new and shiny:
However, after a year in my care, it's deeply unhappy.
It didn't flower at all - buds formed but never opened and dried out. I can't see that this constitutes mere 'bullnosing' - there's something more going on for sure. All the leaves are drooping. Some look moth-eaten. It's generally unhealthy and I don't know how to diagnose it.
My questions are:
1. What have I done wrong so far?
2. Is it saveable right now? What do I do?!
Please help! Thank you so much in advance for any advice you can give me. I really want to save this little plant!
0
Posts
The flowers may just have suffered due to the extremes of weather, hot summer and then the very low temperatures and huge amounts of rain over winter.
Do like bullfinch suggests ,take it out of its pot and examine the roots , if they look ok I’d put it in a slightly larger pot with new compost and wait . Keep it sheltered water it when it needs it like you’ve been doing with rain water ,there’s plenty of that right now ,give it a chance to recover for a week or two . Then trim off the dead buds ( if they don’t drop off themselves) . I reckon you’ll be good to go with it .
They need large amounts of water in late summer when buds are forming. If you're in a dry area, you also have to ensure that they don't completely dry out, and that can happen very easily if only in compost. It can then be hard to rehydrate them well enough.
Lots of rain isn't a problem for them but poor drainage is.
I think there could be a combination of factors, especially as the plant is saving itself by shedding buds.
However, I don't think your pot is very well suited - they aren't terribly deeply rooted, not at that size anyway, but they do need room width wise.
If you can look at all those factors, that will help.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Thank you so much for replying.
I'm working away this week but will certainly extract it from the pot this weekend and inspect the roots. I guess if vine weevil is involved then nematodes would be the way forward?
Luckily all the other various pots seem to be fine. *fingers crossed*
Will update on the root inspection. Thanks again!
Thank you for responding!
I'm sorry your Camellias didn't make it.
I'm going to check the roots this weekend, then will be sourcing a larger pot!
Thank you so much for your advice.
Thank you for the advice, fairygirl - you've replied to my posts before!
I did really try to keep on top of watering last summer, but I guess it's completely feasible that it wasn't enough given how hot it was.
Where can I find a soil-based medium? I know this is a really dumb question, I'm sorry - but all I can find is compost! Do I need to make it up myself? There are plenty of rhododendrons around this part of the world, but I haven't tested my soil pH so had better not try that without checking first... and tbh it's rubbish quality anyway.
I'm definitely going to source a bigger (wider) pot, check out the roots for weevil larvae and repot it up in a better medium - just need to find that medium.
Thank you again!
If nearby gardens can grow rhodos well, there's a good chance your soil is ok. However, you can get mixes at GCs and probably DIY stores etc - look for John Innes types of compost . They're loam based and aimed at various different shrubs/plants. The J.Innes bit is a formula, so there's different ones for different plants. Not something I've ever had to use, but they're useful if you want to pot up something long term and the garden soil you have isn't suitable. I'd have to do it if I wanted to grow something that needed alkaline soil, for example as my soil is neutral to acidic.
Camellias are fine in neutral to acidic soil. It's always said they need acidic soil, but they really don't, although you can certainly add ericaceous compost which adds short term extra nutrition for the plant, especially in a container. There are liquid feeds etc too, for the occasional extra if needed.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Other brands are available.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Pot plants can suffer from lack of water for several reasons:
1. simplly not watered
2. Relied on rain. Rain is often deflected by the leaves and the plant doesn't get as much as you thought
3. Peat-free compost that does not rewet when watered.
4. Too small pot that dries out quickly.
I don't think that 1 and 2 apply to you.
Camellias are not that fussy about compost or tapwater but better to follow the standard advice. Soil-based compost is called John Innes. No3 has the highest level of fertiliser. There is an ericaceous version, but it's not that critcal. Soil-based compost lasts longer and, importantly, is heavier yo stop a bigger planr blowing over.
Pruning is simple. Just direct the plant to the shape you want. Do it immediately after flowering; like now.
Who said vine weevils? If you repot, I wouldn't go fussing about looking for them. That might cause more harm than good.
"Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."