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#1
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Camellia Problem
Hi,
I have a problem with a Camellia - it's in a large pot - and some of the leaves turn completely yellow, then start going brown from the edge inwards. There were a lot of buds, but these seem to be going brown before they open into flowers, and the leaves have small brown dots on the underside. The plant has been in the pot for a couple of years and has been very healthy (or seemed so). Now it just seems 'poorly'. I'm a hopeless gardener, and have looked around the internet for advice, but have swamped myself with a million different 'answers'. Any pointers would be gratefully received! Thanks, Jon |
#2
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Camellia Problem
"Jon" wrote in message ... Hi, I have a problem with a Camellia - it's in a large pot - and some of the leaves turn completely yellow, then start going brown from the edge inwards. There were a lot of buds, but these seem to be going brown before they open into flowers, and the leaves have small brown dots on the underside. The plant has been in the pot for a couple of years and has been very healthy (or seemed so). Now it just seems 'poorly'. I'm a hopeless gardener, and have looked around the internet for advice, but have swamped myself with a million different 'answers'. Any pointers would be gratefully received! Thanks, Jon Sounds starved, Jon. Try re-potting in a bigger pot with an ericaceous type compost, and feed it regularly - with an ericaceous feed - or plant it in the garden somewhere where it won't get morning sun, and enrich the soil with peat or some other enriching substance - again, ericaceous feed regularly. It needs to be kept moist in the autumn for the flower buds to form for the following year. Chris S |
#3
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Camellia Problem
On Sat, 13 May 2006 20:54:50 +0100, "Jon" wrote:
Hi, I have a problem with a Camellia - it's in a large pot - and some of the leaves turn completely yellow, then start going brown from the edge inwards. There were a lot of buds, but these seem to be going brown before they open into flowers, and the leaves have small brown dots on the underside. The plant has been in the pot for a couple of years and has been very healthy (or seemed so). Now it just seems 'poorly'. I'm a hopeless gardener, and have looked around the internet for advice, but have swamped myself with a million different 'answers'. Any pointers would be gratefully received! Thanks, Jon How large is this large pot? In open ground and depending on the type, a camellia can grow to 3 metres high and wide. They really need to be in a decent sized tub or container, say 45-60 cm across. What type of soil is it in? Did you plant it in ericaceous compost, or a John Innes type or just general purpose compost? All acid-loving plants such as camellias need to be in acid ericaceous compost, whereas most JI and general purpose composts are alkaline. When did you last feed and water it? Have you been watering it with hard tap water? Hard tap water is alkaline and contains lime. Over time, the lime builds up in the soil of the pot and turns it alkaline, and camellias don't like alkaline soil; it turns their leaves yellow. At this time of year and through the summer, it should be watered at least once a week, and even twice a week in really hot weather, with soft water or rainwater. It should be fed at least once a month with ericaceous feed, from any garden centre. Follow the instructions on the container. Change to a high potash feed (like tomato feed) in July to promote flower bud formation in late summer. Don't feed after the end of July, as this encourages late growth which may then be prone to frost damage. If it were mine, I would re-pot it into a decent sized tub using ericaceous compost with a bit of extra grit mixed in to help the drainage. Make sure there are several (at least 6 - 8) decent sized (minimum 1 cm diameter) drainage holes (some tubs come without any drainage holes at all!). Put some coarse gravel, small stones or broken crocks into the bottom first, also to help drainage. Loosen the roots slightly on the old 'pot-shaped' root ball, but try not to damage them too much as they tend to be fleshy and brittle. Follow the feeding and watering regime above. -- Chris E-mail: christopher[dot]hogg[at]virgin[dot]net |
#4
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Camellia Problem
There's some good tips there - thank you!
"Jon" wrote in message ... Hi, I have a problem with a Camellia - it's in a large pot - and some of the leaves turn completely yellow, then start going brown from the edge inwards. There were a lot of buds, but these seem to be going brown before they open into flowers, and the leaves have small brown dots on the underside. The plant has been in the pot for a couple of years and has been very healthy (or seemed so). Now it just seems 'poorly'. I'm a hopeless gardener, and have looked around the internet for advice, but have swamped myself with a million different 'answers'. Any pointers would be gratefully received! Thanks, Jon |
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