On May 26, 10:06*am, "David E. Ross" wrote:
On 5/26/12 6:34 AM, BlackThumb wrote:

Hello. Sorry, to ask another question so soon!

I have a young camellia sinensis, which recently grew a new leaf and has
some buds. I was wondering how to prune it to make grow bushier. I am
new to gardening, so this will be my first time pruning.

I have attached some pictures, incase they help. Sorry about the poor
quality!

Camellias should be pruned shortly after flowering. *Although evergreen,
camellias do go dormant in that they stop growing in the fall and
winter; but that is when they flower (C. sinensis in the fall).

To make a camellia more bushy, cut a stem just below the scar for the
past year's growth. *That is, early in 2012, you remove the growth from
2011, cutting just below the joint between 2011 and 2010. *If you merely
head the latest growth, you will normally get only one new shoot. *If
you remove the entire latest growth, several buds from the prior year
should all send out shoots.

Feed LIGHTLY after pruning. *Camellias do best with a relatively lean
soil. *They also want an acidic soil that is always moist but never wet;
thus, they require perfect drainage.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: *California Mediterranean, see
http://www.rossde.com/garden/climate.html
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary

Could you post a picture illustrating this method? I don't think I
can find the right joints.

TIA

HB