Re: camellia pruning

Karrie Reid
I have some very mature camellias which should have been pruned back
after they bloomed, but alas, procrastination possessed me.  They have
really intruded into their neighbors' territory, not to mention the
eaves.  I have waited so long that I am loathe to prune them now,
knowing that I will lose the large part of the already formed little
flower buds.  However, I don't want to crowd and hinder the growth of
the red Japanese maple, the gardenia, or the Daphne odora that are
near/under them.
Opinion poll: If you were me would you just sacrifice next
winter/spring's bloom for tidiness, or push the procrastination to the
next level and wait one more spring to prune, swearing before the
faeries not to delay again?  Is there any damage potential in pruning
before fall/winter?

Diane Whitehead wrote:
> I prune mainly when the flowers are out, and friends are suitably
> impressed by gifts of big bouquets of camellias. I also prune any
> time, as I like to use camellia foliage in bouquets, since it stays
> in good condition for months. Last year in January, I found that the
> flower buds on branches I had cut for foliage opened in the vases.
>
> I have never had any problems no matter when I prune, and I have
> chopped off big branches when construction was going on next to the
> way-up-over-my-head bushes.

Karrie

I agree with Diana, Camellias can be pruned pretty well any time, though
 during or just after flowering is considered to be the best, as
Camellias start into new growth just as their flowers are fading, so one
loses the minimum of new growth and  presumably gets the best flowering
the next year.

I don't myself see that any of the neighbouring plants you mention, other than perhaps the Daphne, will be much discommoded if they are not rescued until spring. The maple will surely be dormant and though I am not familiar with Gardenias, I doubt whether they do much in winter. A lot of evergreens (including certainly Camellias), may not appear any different in winter, but are in fact dormant, with their life-systems no more than ticking over.

So apart from maybe some early pruning to give the Daphne room for its flowering, I should think you can safely enjoy all the rest of your Camellia flowers next spring, but I think you would be wise to then get the pruning done in good time to let the "neighbours" enjoy their spring as well.

Moira

--
Tony & Moira Ryan,
Wainuiomata, North Island, NZ.     Pictures of our garden at:-
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/cherie1/Garden/TonyandMoira/index.htm
NEW PICTURES ADDED 4/Feb/2004

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