Download Page 1 of 4 COLD HARDY CAMELLIAS By Christine Banigan

COLD HARDY CAMELLIAS
By Christine Banigan
Camellias have been the mainstay of many a Southern garden and long the envy of Northerners
who have wanted them in their yards but have been deterred due to their lack of cold hardiness in
Zones 7/6 of Long Island. A number of new camellia introductions that have been tested and proven
hardy for Zone 6 plantings have come into our area recently. Some of these require a protected location
and may occasionally experience damage to flower buds during extreme cold weather. However, these
camellias have proven hardy after a number of years of testing at various sites in the Northeast. Dr.
William Ackerman of Ashton, MD, a retired U.S. Department of Agriculture plant breeder in association
with the U.S. National Arboretum and R. Clifford Parks, a botanist at the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill have introduced varieties that have withstood winter temperatures of -10° F with little or no
damage. Camellias in general, prefer acid loving soils such as where azaleas and rhododendrons reside.
They prefer morning sun and part shade. Northern and Eastern exposures are good areas to plant these
shrubs. Camellias do well with being fertilized yearly with an acid loving fertilizer that is slow release
such as ones used on azaleas and rhododendrons. Camellias come in white, pink or red shades of
flowers and in the following blossom forms as described below:
FLOWER FORM DESCRIPTIONS:
SINGLE: 5-8 petals in one row; prominent display of stamens and pistils, may include petaloids; petals
loose regular or irregular.
SEMIDOUBLE: 2 or more rows of large regular, irregular or loose outer petals (9 or more); prominent
stamen display, may include petaloids; petals may overlap or be set in rows for ‘hose in hose’ effect.
ANEMONE FORM: 1 or more rows of large outer petals, either flat or undulating; convex central mass of
petaloids and stamens.
PEONY FORM: Deep, rounder flower either loose peony form (loose irregular petals often with central
mix of petals and stamens) or full peony form (domed mass of irregular petals and petaloids, with or
without stamens).
ROSE-FORM DOUBLE: Petals imbricated or overlapped as in formal double, but opening to reveal
stamen display in a concave center.
FORMAL DOUBLE: Many rows of flat, cupped or recurved petals, overlapped in symmetrical form;
usually with central cone of tightly furled petals; in some cultivars petals arranged in layers, giving
hexagonal or perfect spiral appearance.
Camellias bloom in either the fall or the spring depending on the variety purchased. Fall blooming
hybrids bloom from September to December and reach heights of around 8-10 feet and 6-8 feet. Spring
blooming hybrids bloom from February to April and reach heights of around 8-10 feet and 6-8 feet
spread.
The following camellias are a partial list and are in alphabetical order.
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FALL BLOOMING HYBRIDS
These varieties are the result of crosses made by Dr. Ackerman using a very cold hardy selection of C.
oleifera with C. sasanqua or C. hiemalis (fall blooming species). They have withstood winter
temperatures of -10° F with little or no damage.
‘Arctic Ice’ – single white flowers
‘Ashton’s Pride’ – lavender pink medium size (3 ½ inch) single form flowers
‘Polar Ice’ – white medium size anemone form flowers
‘Snow Flurry’ – white medium size anemone to peony form flowers
‘Winter’s Beauty’ – shell pink medium size frilly peony to anemone form flowers
‘Winter’s Darling’ – deep pink medium size anemone form flowers
‘Winter’s Dream’ – pink medium size semi double form flowers
‘Winter’s Fire’ – medium red pink medium size semi double form flowers
‘Winter’s Hope’ – white medium size semi double form flowers
‘Winter’s Joy’ – light pink medium size semi double form flowers
‘Winter’s Interlude’ – clear pink with violet shading medium size anemone form flowers
‘Winter’s Peony’ – medium to light pink small size semi double to peony form flowers
‘Winter’s Rose’ – shell pink small size formal double form flowers
‘Winter’s Snowman’ – white medium size semi double to anemone form flowers
‘Winter’s Star’ – light red purple medium size single form flowers
‘Winter’s Waterlily’ – white medium size anemone to formal double form flowers
The following list is form Dr. Parks also using C. oleifera in his crosses.
‘CF-21’ – white with pink markings large size single form flowers
‘Mason Farm’ – white tinged with pink medium size single form flowers
‘Survivor’ – white medium size single form flowers
Camellia sasanqua hybrids for Zone 7
C. sasanqua start blooming at the end of September and will continue blooming until hard freezes in
winter. C. Sasanqua cultivars will thrive in full sun once established (1-3 years) provided that the roots
are kept cool using mulch from a depth of 2-4 inches.
‘Angel’s Kiss’ – pink medium size peony form flowers
‘Bonanza’ – scarlet red medium size semi double form flowers
‘Cleopatra’ – rose pink medium size semi double to peony form flowers
‘LI Pink’ – pink medium size single form flowers
‘Mine-No-Yuki’ – white small size double form flowers
‘Yuletide’ – red small size single form flowers
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SPRING BLOOMING HYBRIDS
These varieties are the results of crosses by Dr. Ackerman using cold hardy C. oleifera and C. japonica.
They will do well in Zone 6B and possibly 6A (protected locations suggested). These camellias will
generally bloom in April.
‘Bette Sette’ – medium pink medium size formal double form flowers
‘Fire ‘n Ice’ – deep dark red medium size semi double to anemone form flowers
‘Ice Follies’ – medium to light rose pink medium size semi double form flowers
‘Pink Icicle’ – shell pink medium size peony to rose form double flowers
‘Spring Icicle’ – bright pink frilly medium size semi double to rose form double flowers
The following list is from Dr. Parks also using C. japonica in his crosses.
‘April Blush’ – shell pink medium size semi double form flowers
‘April Dawn’ – pink and white variegated medium size formal double form flowers
‘April Kiss’ – pinkish red medium size formal double form flowers
‘April Remembered’ – cream to pink shaded large size semi double form flowers
‘April Snow’ – white medium size rose form double flowers
‘April Tryst’ – red medium size anemone form flowers
WHY DO CAMELLIAS NEED PROTECTION IF THEY ARE COLD HARDY?
Cold hardy camellias can tolerate winter temperatures of -10° F but need winter protection to prevent
leaf damage such as browning of their leaf margins or the necrosis of their entire leaves. Camellias
should be situated near a fence on a Northern or Eastern exposure. If that area gets drying winter winds,
then camellias should also receive an application of an anti-desiccant sprayed on the foliage in the late
fall or early winter when the temperature is above 40° F. This reduces transpiration by forming a
protective coating on the leaves. Doing this at the proper time of year also allows the chemical to dry on
the leaves. A second application of this anti-desiccant should be applied in mid-winter if there is a warm
mid-winter spell. Plants such as camellias can be more vulnerable if the weather is severe and it is not
done. Another way of providing winter protection is mulching around the roots to a depth of 3 inches to
prevent moisture form evaporating form the root system. A final way is setting up a windscreen of
burlap around these plants. When the weather warms up, the homeowner can get out of their house
and inspect their plants for any winter damage.
A side note: If a homeowner discovers that the buds are missing on their camellias, it means that
squirrels have been eating them. Usually applying a red cayenne pepper wax spray when the weather is
above 40° F to the buds will deter these animals from their quest to eat the buds.
CAMELLIA PESTS
Camellias can get a variety of problems on them. Most noteworthy are canker, dieback, viruses,
Exobasdium gall, root rot, algal leaf spot and anthracnose. Insect pests can be spider mites, scale insects,
weevils and aphids. Sooty mold is frequently seen on leaves as a by-product of scale and aphid insects.
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Camellias are elegant shrubs for a border or woodland garden; they also make excellent specimen plants
for the Long Island landscape. Their flowers are suitable for cutting and for use in bouquets or display
vases.
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