I didn't think Wednesday-night temps. would be low enough to harm my
camellias, but when I checked on them yesterday at 10 a.m., one of
them --one that was newly planted this past fall -- was looking pretty
bad already (leaves kind of dry and shriveled). Undoubtedly the
combination of cold and wind, plus the fact that we haven't had much
rain lately, made this more susceptible. I covered it up very
thoroughly, surrounded it with bales of pinestraw to block the wind,
and piled snow around the base of the covering.

Question is: Should I water it now (or maybe I should have done that
yesterday), or wait until it warms up (I'm thinking Sunday, when it's
supposed to be in the 40s)?

Thanks.

John Kohl

Hi John,
It would have been better if you had watered your camellia well in
advance of this terrible cold, say last Monday. That way the leaves
and other tissues would have been full of moisture, making them much
less susceptible to desiccation and cold damage. But you are to be
commended for at least noticing that the barn door was open and the
horse got out and doing your best to get it back in with minimal harm.
Watering won't help the camellia until the ground thaws out, of
course, but any time after that should be fine, the sooner the better,
unless the snow did the job for you. Good luck. It will be a while
before you can judge the extent of the damage, i.e. even if the
branches look dead new sprouts may form from the base or roots, so
don't be too hasty to pull it up. The lesson here is that all newly
planted materials are much more vulnerable to drying out during any
part of the first year (or two.) It takes that long for the roots to
grow out enough for the plant to be 'established' and reasonably able
to survive on its own. But this cold dry air is tough like the
drought this summer was tough. Even established plants might be
harmed.
David