Help with potted Camellia

Discussion in 'Woody Plants' started by plantaholic, Sep 4, 2006.

  1. plantaholic

    plantaholic Member

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    Location:
    Richmond
    I've been wanting to have a Camellia upon relocating to BC (from Ontario) so I bought a beautiful Camelia "Bob Hope" 3 months ago from a nursery then repotted it in a bigger plastic pot (10 inch). It's about 1 foot or 2 high and have been fertilizing it. We are renting a ground level apartment and don't have a garden. The landlord does not have a shed or garage but they do have a carport facing west. I'm concerned about overwintering it. Will the plant be ok outside (it's currently enjoying the southwestern exposure under the roof) in the winter? I'm aware that plastic pots are not enough to protect plant roots over the winter. Should I use a heavy duty pot? Should I bring the plant indoors instead? Thanks!
     
  2. dt-van

    dt-van Active Member 10 Years

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    Location:
    Vancouver, Canada
    I have varied experience to report, all with Camellia sasanqua, but in general I understand that Camellias are good container plants:
    - My parents who live very high up in North Vancouver have a small camelia in a 3 gallon plastic nursery pot on their concrete porch which has survived the last two or three winters without damage and bloomed profusely.
    - I live in South Vancouver and had a small camelia 'Yuletide' which was planted in a large rectangular plastic "window box' (10" wide & about 9" deep). It looked OK through the winter but declined & died very early in the first spring apparently because the roots had been damaged by frost. It was sitting on an elevated wooden deck which may have made the location colder than otherwise.
    - I also have a large camellia in a very large clay pot which got serious leaf burn from winter sun. It recovered well so the roots obviously weren't damaged.
    - I've read that small camellia plants don't do well in an oversized pot so I'd recomend sinking the small pot inside a large pot well packed with peat (or soil) for insulation, and placing it in a spot protected from both bright sun and wind.
     
  3. plantaholic

    plantaholic Member

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    Thank you for the information, dt-van!
     
  4. giuseppe

    giuseppe Member

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    I have two camelia one in the pot and one in the ground. As I live in the south of England, they face the strong winter wind and frost every year. despite this they continue to thrive and make beautifull flowers. Camellia grows in acidic, loamy, moist, rich, sandy, silty loam, well drained soil.
     
  5. plantaholic

    plantaholic Member

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    Thanks, Guiseppe. What kind of pot is your Camellia in? Is it a big pot?
     
  6. giuseppe

    giuseppe Member

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    the mature tree is growing in the ground against a south-facing wall and the litlle one in a thick terracotta pot to protect its roots during the winter frost.
     

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