Kramer's Supreme camellia

Sun

Partial shade or bright, filtered light; shelter from hot afternoon sun, cold drying winds and early morning sun after frost.

Water

Keep the root zone evenly moist but not waterlogged. Water deeply during dry spells, especially while flower buds develop in summer.

Soil

Acidic, humus-rich, well-drained soil, ideally pH 5.5-6.5. Use ericaceous potting mix in containers.

Height

6-10 ft (1.8-3 m), potentially taller with age

Spread

6-8 ft (1.8-2.4 m)

Flowers

Late winter to mid-spring, depending on climate; large, fragrant, deep red double flowers with a peony-like arrangement of petals.

Foliage

Evergreen. Glossy, leathery, dark green leaves with finely toothed edges.

Growth

Slow to moderate

Care needed

Medium

• Heat tolerant
• Wildlife
• Low allergen
• Fragrant

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Moderate

Toughness

Fairly tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   1.6 ft (0.5 m)

2. After 1 year

   2.6 ft (0.79 m)

3. After 2 years

   4 ft (1.1 m)

4. After 3 years

   5 ft (1.4 m)

5. After 5 years

   6 ft (2 m)

About 7 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Safe

Growth rate

Slow

• Plant with the top of the root ball level with, or slightly above, the surrounding soil; do not bury the stem base.
• Water deeply during dry weather, checking container plants more often.
• Apply 2-3 in (5-8 cm) of leaf mould or composted bark, keeping it clear of the stems.
• Feed lightly with a camellia or acid-loving plant fertiliser after flowering, following the label rate; avoid late-season feeding.
• Where tap water is alkaline, use collected rainwater when practical, especially for containers.

Pruning. Prune immediately after flowering, removing dead or damaged wood and shortening wayward shoots just above a leaf or side branch. Avoid routine summer or autumn pruning, which removes developing flower buds.

Late winter

Enjoy the first flowers; protect container plants and open blooms from severe frost where practical.

Spring

Collect fallen flowers promptly to reduce the carry-over of camellia petal blight.

Late spring

After flowering, prune lightly if needed and apply a modest feed.

Summer

Water during dry spells as next season's flower buds develop; inspect leaf undersides for scale insects.

Autumn

Plant in mild regions while the soil is still warm, and renew mulch without covering the stem base.

Winter

Keep containers draining freely and shelter their roots from prolonged freezing.

• Use as a flowering evergreen focal point in a sheltered, partly shaded border.
• Combine with rhododendrons, pieris and ferns in an acidic woodland garden.
• Grow in a large container of ericaceous mix beside a sheltered terrace, where the flowers and fragrance are easy to enjoy.
• Plant as an informal evergreen screen, allowing enough room to avoid frequent clipping.

Garden styles it suits: Woodland, Japanese, Traditional, Romantic rose garden, Sensory garden and Winter interest.

Plant it with: Japanese pieris, Rhododendrons, Japanese painted fern, Hellebores, Japanese forest grass and Snowdrops.

Wildlife: The dense evergreen growth offers shelter for small birds. Its densely double flowers provide less accessible pollen and nectar than single-flowered camellias.

• Camellia petal blight: flowers develop spreading brown patches and rot. Remove affected and fallen flowers promptly, and replace contaminated surface mulch beneath the shrub.
• Scale insects: check leaf undersides for fixed bumps or white deposits, often accompanied by yellowing or sooty mould. Prune heavily infested shoots and use a horticultural oil labelled for camellias, following temperature restrictions.
• Yellow leaves with green veins: alkaline soil or water can cause iron deficiency. Check soil pH and drainage; use an appropriate chelated iron treatment and consider a container with ericaceous mix if the soil is chalky.
• Bud drop or poor flowering: drought during summer bud formation, waterlogging and abrupt temperature changes are common causes. Maintain steady moisture, improve drainage and choose a sheltered site.

Camellia japonica is not known to be toxic to cats, dogs, horses or people. No part is recognised as poisonous, though it is not grown as food and eating plant material may cause mild stomach upset.

• Sasanqua camellia (Camellia sasanqua)

  Usually flowers in autumn to early winter and has smaller leaves and generally smaller flowers. Its petals commonly fall separately, whereas Japanese camellia flowers often drop more or less whole.

• Reticulata camellia (Camellia reticulata)

  Typically has larger, more prominently net-veined leaves and a more open habit, often with very large flowers. Hybrids can blur these differences, so a reliable label is useful.

Camellia honours the Jesuit botanist Georg Joseph Kamel, and japonica means 'of Japan'.

Propagation. Propagate by semi-ripe cuttings in summer with gentle bottom heat, or by air layering. Named cultivars can also be grafted; seedlings will not reliably match 'Kramer's Supreme'.

Accepted botanical name

Camellia japonica

In the US and Canada

Introduced in the lower 48 states.

Native range

China North-Central, China Southeast, Japan, Korea, Nansei-shoto and Taiwan.

Measured

Average height 560 cm.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0), USDA PLANTS and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.