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January camellia care tips for the Camellia City


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Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED JAN 15, 2020
Early-flowering Christmas camellias may be pruned and fertilized after they finish blooming. (Photo: Debbie Arrington)
Wait until after bloom for pruning or feeding

In the Camellia City, camellias are taking center stage.

These popular winter bloomers add color (and sometimes a little fragrance) to often gray days. It’s no wonder why we love them.

First to open are the Christmas camellias, which – true to their nickname – flowered throughout December and are still blooming now.

Next come the Japonica camellias, the pride of Sacramento and stars of the late winter garden. They tend to open in February.

Knowing which is which is important when it comes to camellia care.

As they finish flowering, prune Christmas camellias (Camellia sasanqua), the early-flowering varieties. They don’t need much, but selective pruning can promote bushiness, upright growth and more bloom next winter.

Feed with an acid-type fertilizer formulated for camellias, which prefer slightly acid soils.

But don’t feed your Japonica camellias until after they finish blooming in early March. Feeding while camellias are in bloom may cause them to drop unopened buds.

April is the best time to shape Japonica camellias, after they’ve finished their bloom cycle. Like the Sasanqua, the Japonicas need little if any trimming. They grow very slowly – and for a very long time. Healthy camellias can live for several decades.

Got some stunning camellia varieties in your garden? The 96th annual Sacramento Camellia Show will be held March 7 and 8 at the Elks Lodge, 6446 Riverside Blvd., Sacramento.

To learn more about the show and camellias, contact the Camellia Society of Sacramento.

Details: www.camelliasocietyofsacramento.org .

-- Debbie Arrington

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GENERAL GARDENING

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Keywords:
Sacramento sasanqua Sacramento Camellia Show winter gardening japonica camellias fertilizer

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Garden Checklist for week of May 19

Temperatures will be a bit higher than normal in the afternoons this week. Take care of chores early in the day – then enjoy the afternoon. It’s time to smell the roses.

* Plant, plant, plant! It’s prime planting season in the Sacramento area. If you haven’t already, it’s time to set out those tomato transplants along with peppers and eggplants. Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.

* Direct-seed melons, cucumbers, summer squash, corn, radishes, pumpkins and annual herbs such as basil.

* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.

* In the flower garden, direct-seed sunflowers, cosmos, salvia, zinnias, marigolds, celosia and asters.

* Plant dahlia tubers. Other perennials to set out include verbena, coreopsis, coneflower and astilbe.

* Transplant petunias, marigolds and perennial flowers such as astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia and verbena.

* Keep an eye out for slugs, snails, earwigs and aphids that want to dine on tender new growth.

* Feed summer bloomers with a balanced fertilizer.

* For continued bloom, cut off spent flowers on roses as well as other flowering plants.

* Don’t forget to water. Seedlings need moisture. Deep watering will help build strong roots and healthy plants.

* Add mulch to the garden to help keep that precious water from evaporating. Mulch also cuts down on weeds. But don’t let it mound around the stems or trunks of trees or shrubs. Leave about a 6-inch to 1-foot circle to avoid crown rot or other problems.

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