Widespread in the southern tropics from Japan to the Philippines, camellia rules the evergreen forests in the southern regions of Russia. Gorgeous and sophisticated, she cannot but like. Her flowers, vaguely reminiscent of roses, amaze the imagination with their regal beauty. Camellia, a very demanding culture, to grow it in a summer cottage will require some knowledge, but responsive to the care and feeding, the princess will reward with a long festive fireworks of flowers. Giving luxurious flowers, garden camellia needs care and maintenance.
Evergreen Camellia: Description
The genus Camellia of the tea family has up to 80 varieties, which are evergreen shrubs or trees. The bush is adorned with leaves - glossy, leathery oval, pointed single or fused at the base, as well as flowers of all shades of white-pink-purple. Many species are widespread due to their high decorative qualities. The camellia bush garden blooms in the winter, when the thermometer does not exceed 12 ° C. Surprising and the duration of flowering shrubs. It ranges from 1 to 3 months. Each flower can not fade for about a month. On this amazing shrub, flowers appear in winter at the ends of the shoots. Blooming garden camellia, the photo of which is presented, is a festive and solemn spectacle. She is able to radically change any, even the most dull and unpromising site. That is why among landscape designers, camellia is on a high pedestal. These magnificent shrubs are invaluable in landscaping, creating park and garden compositions. The most interesting object in creating landscape masterpieces is considered Japanese garden camellia - an evergreen tree or shrub reaching 10-15 m in height, common in the subtropical forests of Japan and China. A distinctive feature of Japanese camellia is the presence of large red single flowers located in the sinuses and on the tops of the branches. Flowering - spectacular and long. In culture, up to 1000 different garden forms and varieties with a variety of terry and semi-double flowers with a diameter of 4 to 15 cm. Japanese camellia is photophilous, but also tolerates slight shading.
Camellia garden: planting and care
The easiest way to propagate camellia is by seed. Usually freshly harvested seeds are sown, the germination rate of which is 80-90%. They are not stored, as they are rapidly losing their ability to germinate. An ideal soil for sowing is a mixture of river sand and peat in equal proportions. To accelerate seed germination, the air in the room where the seedlings are grown is heated to + 22 ° C. Seedlings germinate and take root throughout the year. It should be remembered that the young seedlings obtained are characterized by a low level of resistance to adverse effects, however, with good care they intensively develop, increasing the degree of winter hardiness, which differs garden camellia. Care and cultivation ends with flowering, which usually occurs in the fifth or seventh year, sometimes after 2-3 years.
Propagation by cuttings
For propagation of varietal camellias, the vegetative method is more suitable - apical cuttings, for which shoots of the current year with two or three internodes with developed axillary and apical buds are chosen. The dimensions of the cuttings are purely individual, ranging from 3 to 12 cm and depend on the variety of camellia. They are cut off in July or August. From the bottom, the cuttings under the axillary kidney make the most oblique cut, the bottom sheet is also cut. To increase the likelihood of rooting, cuttings are placed in a solution of stimulants for 5 - 7 hours and planted in clean river sand, covered with glass or film. An important condition for rooting is to maintain a constant temperature in the region of 23-27 ° C. Rooting takes a long time - up to one and a half - two months. Treatment with a stimulant significantly increases the rate of rooting and forms a powerful root system of the plant.
Preparation of soil for planting in a permanent place
Camellia bush garden - a lover of acidic soils. Fertile and permeable soils are especially suitable for planting this shrub. When planting, it is important to remember: the camellia can not be too deep, its root neck should be on the same level with the ground. Once a year, the bush needs top dressing. The best fertilizer for camellia is considered organic. In late summer, when the plant begins to form buds for flowering next year, camellia is fertilized with humus, chicken droppings. Later you do not need to feed the bush, as the buds may fall. A necessary condition for the good development of the plant is mulching with leaf humus, grass, shredded bark or wood chips, i.e., all that ensures the conservation of soil acidity and moisture at the roots. When mulching, it is necessary to leave the root neck open, as otherwise the camellia can rot.
Watering
Good development resulting from proper cultivation will be appreciated by garden camellia. Planting and care, as well as competent watering contribute to
rapid plant growth. Regular watering should be provided in all seasons. In the summer, watered more generously, given the weather conditions and the place of planting. If the summer turned out to be hot and dry, it is necessary to spray the shrub. In cooler winter, watering is more careful and infrequent.
Camellia Care
Camellias grow well in humid and temperate climates. They are quite winter-hardy and withstand frosts down to -20 ° C, prefer shade, and in areas with dry, hot summers, they have a shady location. Camellias especially like to be located next to a fence, a wall or other higher culture, that is, a support that protects from winds and bright sun. Unusual time of flowering plants: autumn - winter - the beginning of spring. These are the biological features of this kind: for the formation of high-quality buds and flowering shrubs, short daylight hours and coolness are required. Comfortable air temperature for laying flower buds is 18-20 ° C, for flowering - 8-12 ° C. Camellias love diffused light, but not direct bright sunlight. Blooming tea family they are not afraid of night frosts, but when the flowers thaw quickly in the morning sun, they lose their appearance and die. Therefore camellias usually Do not plant on the eastern slopes.
Pruning
The crown of camellia is formed in the spring, pinching the tops of the shoots. This is done in order to better branch the camellia garden. Planting and caring for the bushes is not a complicated operation. In late autumn, pruning of shoots is necessary to ensure the growth of axillary buds. Repeating this operation every year, you can achieve excellent decorative and flowering bush.
Pests and diseases
Unfortunately, pests and diseases do not bypass camellias. It is often affected by fungi, aphids and worms. Fungal diseases are manifested by the appearance of gray and black spots on the leaves and brown on the flowers. The diseased plant cannot be restored, so it is better to remove and burn it.
Pests insects feed on plant juices, causing it to rot. To get rid of parasites, you should wipe the affected leaves and stems with a solution of alcohol with further processing of camellia with insecticides.
Incredible joy gives amazing beauty and duration of flowering camellia garden. Planting and caring for this culture is not as burdensome as they say in many publications, but it is impossible to restrain emotions, looking at the regal decoration of a magnificent tree.