That was a very interesting article, coleup. It reminded me that I need to dig some leaves into the soil in an area that was nothing but ground pine stumps a few years ago.
Yardening part 5, Mid Atlantic, Nov 19 2014
Yeah, oak leaves are a pain if you're looking for compost action. Whole leaves seem either dry because water runs off, or soaked anaerobic slippery masses when wet leaves make layers.
What worked pretty well for me, shred then make a several inch layer on the ground and cover with something to keep them always moist. I did that, covered with plywood, they went pretty well over winter due to constant moist darkness.
Ash leaves just disappear- sadly, many ash trees are disappearing now (borer).
All our oak leaves come from other places, but I do mostly shred them either with the mower or the vac before composting. I often have a bit of a mound of grass clippings and pull some of them into the brown to wet it.
So nice to see the sun and have NO shopping to do!
I raked the lawn some (have to keep it clear anyway, so we can spot the 'land mines')
And took a number of potted plants to the deck for a look see, douse with insecticidal soap, and watering. Cross fingers, no impending spider mite disasters seen. Brug cuttings growing like champs but they might all be the pink, my least favorite.
FYI--to all---
I am back from my annual trip to NJ--safe and sound and with no
traffic delays.
Sally-Should not be a mystery re which Brugs you have "rowing
like champs."
Look at the leaves on your Brug cuttings. If it is the Dr. Seuss--
the leaf edges will be serrated. If smooth--it is the pink one,
Odd--I just went to check mine....on most of the Dr. S. cuttings--there is a big
(1st?) leaf that has smooth edges--and then all the subsequent leaves are serrated.
Go figure.....SOOO--patience....
Glad to be home after driving 460mi. the last 2 days.
Gita
Thanks Gita I will check.
If the weather holds my yardening will first consist of taking down the decorations, then grooming a couple more beds, which have been standing in neglect since first frost.
I took down the Christmas decorations today. It was so gorgeous out I only needed a t-shirt. I also sprayed Wiltpruf on my Sekkan Sugi Cryptomerias. The one is more susceptible to browning out than the other but the protection works.
I wonder whether Wiltpruf would help protect a Rhododendron against winter damage? I think its biggest problem was the harsh winter sun.
I've tried several camellias before, and none have made it through the winter. I saw a really pretty one in bloom this fall, and was at the nursery three times before I finally decided to get it. The guy at the nursery told me to try Wiltpruf on it over the winter. It will be interesting to see if that works. I really like camellias, but if this one doesn't make it I guess I'll have to give them up as no-goes here.
Winter sun is weak, hence the colder weather. Winter damage is due mainly to dessication and low temperatures.
Terri--
My "Bob Hope" camellia has made it through winter for 13 years.
It is beautiful--but last winter all the flower buds froze off.
Now it is full of buds again. The buds form in fall and swell, slowly,
until it's bloom time--which is around the beginning of March.
I am sure you have seen me post photos of it--the triple-red huge blooms.
It is by my front door--protected on both sides by large, old shrubs.
It faces NW--and gets almost NO sun.
Camellias need this kind of protection. NO winter winds blowing on it...
I may be trimming it back a bit this year, in August. If anyone knows how to
propagate a camellia from cuttings, I will have plenty--just in time for the Fall Swap.
Gita
Aspen
Have you tried any of the Ackerman camillias? They've been bred for this area by a W. Ackerman. Last year I spent a lot of time out at his place in Ashton Md. It was fabulous wandering through "garden" and green houses. It was in April-May and they were allover and the color and fragrance was unbelievable. He was almost 100 when I was caring for him. Greer Gardens ww.greergardens.com/camellias1.htm carries them and they are super hardy.
Yehudith
GT: I agree that winter sun is weak but towards the end of February it starts getting pretty strong. Interesting note: all three of my Nellie Stevens hollies burned out on the south side of the plant last winter. However, they did not do that the previous winter. Maybe something is to be said about the sun in combo with cold temps? Perhaps the sun pulls the water out of the leaf and then, since the roots are frozen, the plant cannot replace the lost moisture in those leaves?
Seq, I've read that winter sun is especially damaging for marginal plants like camellias.
Morning sun is particularly bad because it warms up the plant too quickly.
From a NYTimes articles: Though they will take sun, they do better in semi-shade, sited where the winter sun won’t hit them early in the day. “Because the temperature change is too rapid,” Mr. Cresson said. “That camellia has come through the coldest part of the night, then the sun comes up and hits it, and the tissues can’t adjust to the rapid temperature change.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/17/garden/camellias-ready-for-a-cold-snap.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Terri
I'm watching a show just now about Camillias. They're saying that the problem is with an East facing exposure because just as you said the buds are frozen solid from the night and when the sun comes up they get hit by the sun before they can defrost. The same thing happens to the trunk which causes the bark to split. They're showing one of the original collections of camillias that came from Japan and China in the 1830's-1850's. They are original imports not propagated offspring. I can't believe this show came on just in time.
Wow, that's pretty interesting stuff. I never would have thought that.
Here's an article from the presenter of the program about the camillias. These heritage camillias are kept underglass at Thorndon Hall.
UPDATED: 20:21 EST, 22 January 2010
View comments
Out of favour for years, the camellia – a cousin of the tea plant – is flavour of the month in British gardens once more.
For all the many qualities of the tea plant, Camellia sinensis – which, for my money, creates one of the most spectacularly beautiful man-made landscapes, and its dried and fermented leaves make the best drink known to mankind – no one can claim it is a showy plant. Yet its garden cousins are among the most loved of all flowering shrubs and trees.
The first recorded camellia in this country was grown by Lord Petre at Thorndon Hall in Essex in the 1730s, and we know it was thriving and flowering by 1745.
The first named varieties to attract public interest were C. japonica 'Alba Plena' and 'Variegata', both of which were brought to England in 1792 on an East India Company ship.
Spectacularly beautiful: Camellia sinensis dried and fermented leaves make the best drink known to mankind
Spectacularly beautiful: Camellia sinensis dried and fermented leaves make the best drink known to mankind
Interest quickly grew with the arrival of more named varieties. But because they were from far-away climes and considered exotic, they were grown at first in 'stove houses', which were too hot and humid, and many of these first plants died.
This did not stop the Victorians building camellia houses for prize specimens, some of which – such as that built by Joseph Paxton at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire in 1840 – still exist, and with the original plants, which still flower prolifically each spring.
The truth is, most camellias are perfectly happy in very cool conditions and are rarely killed by cold.
The main problem with the C. japonica and C. reticulata varieties is that, when their flowers start to fade, they cling to the shrub, looking for weeks like used tissue. The only way to deal with this is to dead-head each bloom by hand – otherwise it is like having a wonderful party then failing to tidy up afterwards.
The combination of this extra work and the belief that most camellias were tender and therefore needed special protection meant that interest in camellias went into decline at the beginning of the 20th century.
In the 1920s, however, John Charles Williams crossed C. saluenensis with an unnamed form of C. japonica at Caerhays Castle in Cornwall. It produced a hardy hybrid called Camellia x williamsii.
Hardy: Camellia x williamsii sheds its flowers as they fade
Hardy: Camellia x williamsii sheds its flowers as they fade
The main advantage this has over its parents is that it sheds its flowers as they fade. It is also noticeably hardier than the japonica camellias. Camellias with large leaves, such as the japonica varieties, suffer from exposure to wind and cold and even hot sun, so need shelter.
However, the C. williamsii varieties have smaller leaves so are generally better able to cope with more exposed positions. These hybrids also flowered early and long, even in areas with low light intensity such as the north of Britain, and obligingly dropped the spent blooms.
Not surprisingly, as soon as the war years were passed and people could finally turn from digging for victory to growing ornamentals in their back gardens, they became enormously popular once again, and interest in growing camellias surged.
The best known of these original crosses is 'J. C. Williams', which was first brought to public attention in 1940. Another very popular C. williamsii hybrid is 'Donation', which was given an Award of Merit in 1941. My own C. williamsii favourites are 'Brigadoon', a semi-double pink, 'Francis Hanger', a single white, and 'Jury's Yellow', which has white outer petals and a frilly mass of pale yellow inner ones.
Whatever camellia you grow in your garden, it will do best in an acidic soil with a pH between 5.5 and 6.5. If the level is higher or lower than this they cannot absorb the necessary minerals for healthy growth.
They like soil with a loose, open structure, so add plenty of compost (not peat, which should never be used in gardens, or mushroom compost, which is very alkaline) before planting to allow the right balance between water retention and free drainage.
DID YOU KNOW?
The late Queen Mother was fond of growing camellias. After her death, a camellia from her gardens was placed on her coffin a she lay in state
If your soil is too alkaline, the leaves will start to show distress by turning yellow. A thick mulch with composted pine bark or needles or composted bracken will help maintain the pH balance.
Camellias should never be planted on an east facing wall. It is not so much the cold that is the problem but the rapid thawing in the early morning sunlight that inevitably follows a clear, freezing night.
As the frozen tissues of the flowers and buds are heated by the sun's rays, they burst and can be destroyed. On a west-facing wall, the plant will become just as cold but will thaw gradually with the rise in air temperature, so by the time the sun hits it directly it has already defrosted.
Camellias like cool, dry winters and warm, wet summers. In this country the greatest problems are from wet winters and spring frosts. The best way to cope with the wet is to add grit and compost to the planting hole so that the roots do not sit in wet soil.
Freezing conditions dehydrate the leaves, which lose more water as they thaw, especially if exposed to wind. The frozen roots mean that no water is taken up to replace this, and the result is often that the top or exposed part of the shrub dies back.
The extent of the damage will not become fully apparent until spring, when new growth appears and, if the roots are damaged, will drop and die back. Draping fleece over the plant is a short-term remedy, but the most important factor is to provide permanent shelter from the wind.
If you have a camellia in a pot, wrap the pot in bubble wrap or bring it indoors in cold weather. If the container has frozen solid, never thaw it out quickly. This will kill the plant. Let it thaw slowly and naturally, protecting the plant from any wind as it does so.
Camellias must have plenty of water in their growing season, from April to October. The critical period for watering is when the flower buds are forming, from midsummer to early autumn.
Problem: When Camellia japonica flowers start to fade, they cling to the shrub, looking like used tissue
Problem: When Camellia japonica flowers start to fade, they cling to the shrub, looking like used tissue
Drought during this period will result in poor flowers the following spring or even a large de-budding after the first frost. Ideally, you should use rainwater, which is slightly acidic.
Prune just before the plant starts to grow in spring, just as the flowers finish. Train young plants to have one central stem, leaving the first foot or so bare to get ventilation around the bark.
Next year's flower buds will form on the initial spring growth, and although there may be a second burst of growth in midsummer, this will not produce any buds.
The most common cause for worry in all my correspondence about camellias is sooty mould, a black fungus, on the upper surface of the leaves. It is unsightly but rarely damages the plant and is a result of sticky excrement, known as honeydew, dropped by an aphid or scale insect crawling on the underside of a leaf above.
The mould then grows on the honeydew rather than the leaf itself. The best treatment is to get rid of the offending insects, and the best way to do this is to wash the leaves with soap and warm water. Spraying the shrub with water from a hose will dislodge any returning insects.
The next most common cause for concern is petal blight. This gives the petals a rusty appearance, and soon the whole flower turns brown and dies. (Frost and cold winds can cause browning, too, but this usually starts from the outer part of the petals and is, initially, a paler brown.)
The affected flower falls to the ground, and a sclerotium, or fruiting body, can form at the base of the petals. This can lie dormant in the ground for years before growing into a small mushroom, which will explode in spring, just as camellias are flowering, and send its spores for hundreds of metres.
The only action to take is to gather up all fallen blooms before burning them.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/gardening/article-1241417/MONTY-DON-Why-Camellias-everyones-cup-tea.html#ixzz3NHxoOJ1P
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Hmmmmmmmmm....
Nowhere in all these writings MY camellia is mentioned. "Bob Hope'.
I think it has an amazingly beautiful bloom. It IS an old-timer, though.
Dug through my notes:
The "Bob Hope" camellia was developed in the USA in 1972.
It is the darkest of all the reds.
Will grow 6'-8' tall and wide.
Best propagated by air-layering.
Earlier flower obtained through Japanese Species C. Sasangue.
The Bob Hope is from a cross of: C. Japonica X Saluensis and Reticulatus.
That is all it says on my little note paper. Cant explain any of it to you....
I am sure Googling would provide more info.
G.
Wow, thanks for all the info on camellias! The ones that I've had and killed in the past were japonicas. After reading the info post, I probably made at least 3 of the mistakes mentioned. The one that I bought this year is a sasanqua. It is planted in the shade - southeast exposure. However, I did treat it with wiltproof, so maybe that will help. I have never heard of the Ackerman bred camellias, but I read an article a long time ago that the National Arboretum did some trials for this area. I'll have to do a little research on those that have been proven to do well here. In the meantime, I'm keeping fingers crossed that the one I got this fall will make it!
https://allthingsplants.com/plants/view/664918/Camellia-Camellia-sasanqua-William-Lanier-Hunt/
Yehudith. What a treat to be able to walk William Ackerman's gardens.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home/a-life-with-camellias/2013/07/23/b0956e08-efe2-11e2-a1f9-ea873b7e0424_story.html
He introduced many Fall Blooming Camelias that begin to bloom in October /Nov and continue thru the winter. These Fall Bloomers thus avoid the loss of buds to later bloomers like Gita's Bob Hope and others and are much more reliable bloomers here in our area.
They also work well farther North and West as Carolyn's Shade Garden points out.
http://carolynsshadegardens.com/2012/12/02/2012-fall-blooming-camellias/
I wonder if it might be the same Ackerman who developed the
red Epi that I have--called Ackermanii. (Epi #1)--???
Here is a link to the National Arboretum camellia introductions - they were Ackermans.
http://www.usna.usda.gov/Newintro/camelli1.html
Hi,
I was asked by JB if I would pass along the news that
Dave Walton passed away yesterday--Dec. 28, 2014.
I did not know Dave.
JB knew to say that he was a Hosta fanatic--so I thought I would
let everyone there know--just in case anyone there did know him.
I also posted it on the Shade Gardening Forum.
His wife, Kim, had posted about it on Facebook, but not sure if she let anyone
know of Dave's death on DG. He lived in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
If any of you here knew him, please pass this information along to anyone
who would have known Dave Walton.
Thank you. Gita
At Lowe's , could not turn a blind eye to the very last one of this holly like Osmanthus that I included in this article thumbnail photo
http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/4584/
Last lonely one, small but full, and clearanced down to 2.24!!!!
Sounds like another good find, and you were so kind not to leave it all by itself.
I gathered a bunch of the yard decorations, leaving only the Moravian star, snowmen, reindeer, and door trim. That way in the event of wet weather I will not have a mess.
Not very warm today, but being out in the sunshine is just wonderful. Just what I needed for the winter blues.
This message was edited Dec 30, 2014 2:37 PM
Go shiki Sallyg!
Hey coleup, does Ace Outback have anything left, or do they get rid of it all by Xmas?
Sounds like Sally's on a mission. LOL
I'm seeing daffodils poking through the mulch. They have been fooled by the cold November and warm-ish December. I'm seeing flower buds on the hellebores as well.
Oh man that stinks SSG, I hope they don't get frozen off. We are getting into peak winter season coming up.
That's one downside of living in a warm microclimate. We only had a couple of days of frost in all of December!
Jeff--
Generally--bulbs poking out early will survive a cold winter.
Flower buds, on the other hand, will be killed.
From my brain archives.....:o)
G.
Shouldn't hurt the Helles, they are called Lenten Roses because they usually bloom for Lent in Feb. They may be a bit early but they can take the cold, even the blooms.
I have a couple crocus poking their heads out but luckily the local rabbit has eaten all the top growth so I won't have to worry about the leaves getting damaged. Some daffs may have put up 1/4" of growth but nothing to write home about. One year I had about 4" of growth on some daffs and they bloomed terribly the next season.
I get hellebore flowers this early every year and they make it through the winter fine.
I couldn't believe my eyes. The other day on the way to a patient's house I saw a whole street lined with blooming cherries or plums. Thought I was seeing things. I have to get a picture. Those into scripture know what this presages.
Yehudith
There is a variety of cherry that bloom in the fall-late winter time frame. I see them near my house as well. I can't remember what species it is.
My daffodils come up early every year, and they're usually not damaged by the cold. I did get some stunted blooms last year, though.
Ric--
I have a quick question for you.
Should my battery pack to my trimmer stay plugged in all winter?
So far it is--but it seems irrational. Trying to save on electrical.
I know it will lose some power if I unplug it--but it won't be used
for many months. I'm OK to use up what is left in both batteries
when I need to--and then plug them on to fully charge up.
Thanks, Gita
G, I don't mean to answer for Rick, just giving my 2 cents.
If you're not going to be using it until some time in the spring, I would leave it unplugged and just give it a charge right before you use it.
Thanks Jeff---
BUT--in lengthy discussions last summer--Ric and others recommended
NOT charging up half empty batteries, as in time, the battery
will "learn" to just charge half way up.
Ric said that one must run the battery until it is dead--and only then charge it--
as then it will accept a full charge. SO--after I was done edging (last summer)
and the battery was barely humming--I laid it on my patio table and let it run until
it stopped completely.
SO-I will unplug it now--but next spring--what i will have to do is use whatever
charge is left in the batteries first,or run them out-- and only then re-charge them.
Makes sense to me--so I will follow that recommendation.
Gita