100 SOUTHERN FLORIST AND NURSERYMAN 
Growing and Selling 
The Camellia 
It’s easy—if you have the right kind of plant, the right 
kind of soil, the right kind of water, the right kind of 
weather, the right kind of salesmen. . 
By J. S. TORMEY 
HERE HAS been so much dis- 
jointed misinformation in regard 
to camellias that it may be well to 
discuss the subject with a view to 
clearing up some of the misconcep- 
tions which have led to the belief 
that camellias are plants requiring 
more care than they really do, and 
that one must be some kind of wiz- 
ard to do a good job of growing 
them. And, mind you, I said grow- 
ing them, not producing them from 
the start. The production of camel- 
J. S. Tormey, owner of Tor- 
mey’s camellia ranges at Temple 
City, Cal. was recently called 
upon at a meeting of a group of 
his dealer-customers for an “off 
the cuff” discussion of camellias. 
Although Mr. Tormey’s address 
was entirely extemporaneous, his 
remarks were a composite repre- 
sentation of many years’ experl- 
ence in camellia culture, and are 
particularly timely now when the. 
trade is so concerned about the 
future of this plant. His talk, in 
abridged form, is presented here. 
lias should be left to the one who 
starts them in the first place. Hav- 
ing the right start in hfe as given 
by a modern, progressive producer, 
a two-year old camellia plant can 
become a pleasure to “grow” by 
anyone. 
If you want to grow camellias out- 
doors in the ground, you can be suc- 
cessful if the growing is done in sec- 
tions of the country where tempera- 
tures are suitable. Camellias as a 
plant will stand below-freezing tem- 
peratures for a short time, but the 
flowers are ruined by freezing wea- 
ther. In some dry, desert sections 
it will be difficult to succeed with 
camellias planted in the open if 
temperatures stay above those of 
milder sections for too long a period. 
Camellias are a sun-loving plant 
. no trouble at all 
after they get “old,” but while 
young (under 20 years) they do not 
have a big enough “pipe line” (that 
is, the main stem or trunk) to bring 
up moisture from the bottom, nor 
do they have sufficient roots to re- 
place the moisture evaporated by a 
full-day exposure to hot sun. So, 
until the pipe line gets big enough, 
which is usually several years, they 
should be planted where they will 
not get more sun than they can 
stand. The best method is a half- 
day exposure, without any mid-day, 
“straight down” sunshine striking 
the plants. 
If you will provide proper drain- 
age when planting a camellia, there 
is very little danger that you will 
overwater them. If you dig a hole 
in the ground where you want to 
set the plants out and fill it with 
water, you may determine whether 
the drainage is sufficient. The faster 
the seepage to empty the holes, the 
better the drainage. 
If the hole is not empty of water 
within a couple of hours you will 
be trying to regulate the given 
amount of water each time, and this 
scheduie is not only tedious but is 
impossible to maintain. Then, too, in 
winter the water will not drain off 
during periods of heavy rains. In 
short, it is better not to plant cam- 
ellias at all if you can’t provide the 
correct drainage. The answer is: 
Grow them in containers. 
There are many kinds of materials 
and mixes, but I have not found 
anything better than a simple mix 
consisting of equal parts of peat 
moss, coarse sand or gravel and 
good sandy soil—nothing more. The 
density of the mix as outlined will 
provide excellent drainage, distrib- 
ute moisture evenly and eliminate 
fussing with composts and resulting 
contamination. This mix is recom- 
mended for either ground or con- 
tainer growing. 
Beware of the “magic fertilizers.” 
Just feed during the spring and 
summer at about two-month inter- 
vals, using cotton seed meal or cas- 
June 29, 1951 
tor bean meal, about a teaspoonful 
for each gallon of soil surrounding 
the plant. The necessary amount 
can be estimated by visualizing a 
container which would hold the 
plant. The food should be simply 
scratched into the soil—the water 
will gradually carry it down. 
I believe there is too much em- 
phasis on pH. It has been proven by 
our chemist that plants grow well 
where the pH is anywhere between 
four and 63. 
We found out the hard way that 
the so-called acid foods are too var- 
ied in their formulas. It is simple 
for anyone to keep the soil at the 
right pH, slightly on the acid side, 
between 43 and 64, by making an 
occasional test and applying iron or 
aluminum sulphate in liquid form 
mixed with water. 
Camellias can be grown in con- 
tainers simply and satisfactorily re- 
gardless of climatic or geographical 
conditions. Some time ago I read 
an article which discussed growing 
camellias both outdoors and in the 
greenhouse. The article stated that 
the camellia is one flower which 
can be perfected in a cool green- 
house. 
The camellia blooms naturally 
from October to May, depending on 
the variety, and is a short-day flow- 
er. There is no need to use black 
cloth at one season and electric 
lights another to change winter to 
summer and vice-versa. The camel- 
lia is a natural bloomer at the time 
of year when flowers bring their 
highest prices, and can be grown in 
a greenhouse that contains other 
stock during periods of freeze, thus 
tying up the greenhouse for only a 
short period. When the danger of 
freezing weather has passed, they 
can be removed from the green- 
house and placed in part-shade, such 
as that provided by a lath house, 
and left there until the freeze ap- 
proaches again. 
In considering containers, one 
thing must be remembered — clay 
pots are not suitable for camellias. 
When placed outdoors, they act as 
blotters and cause root drying and 
burning. Metal containers have 
proved to be the ideal thing for 
camellia plants. Drain holes, lots of 
them, on the sides of the container. 
If they are near the bottom, they 
will not get stopped up when the 
plant is set up on the ground. If 
the holes are of sufficient quantity, 
overwatering will be impossible. 
The mixture previously described, 
peat, sand and soil, should be used. 
Many who have not succeeded 
