Camellia gracilis
| Camellia gracilis | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-7.3 |
| Evergreen | |
| Height: | 13' |
| Blooms: | Mid Fall-Mid Winter |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Camellia gracilis (common name: camellia)
Propagation: Seed - can be sown as soon as it is ripe in a greenhouse[1]. Stored seed should be pre-soaked for 24 hours in warm water and the hard covering around the micropyle should be filed down to leave a thin covering[2][1][3]. It usually germinates in 1 - 3 months at 23°c[3]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in light shade in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions when they are more than 15cm tall and give them some protection from winter cold for their first year or three outdoors[K].
Cuttings of almost ripe wood, 10 - 15cm with a heel, August/September in a shaded frame. High percentage but slow[2].
Cuttings of firm wood, 7 - 10cm with a heel, end of June in a frame[4][2]. Keep in a cool greenhouse for the first year[4].
Leaf-bud cuttings, July/August in a frame.
Cultivation: We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it should succeed outdoors at least in the milder parts of this country. According to some botanists this species is part of C. caudata. Wall., ranging from the Himalayas and Burma to China and Indo-China[5]. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus.
Prefers a woodland soil but thrives in a warm open well-drained loam if leafmould is added[6][4][7]. A calcifuge plant, preferring a pH between 5 and 7[4][7]. Prefers the partial shade of a light woodland[7].
Prefers a wet summer and a cool but not very frosty dry winter[7].
Plants are not very self-compatible, self-fertilized flowers produce few seeds and these are of low viability[7].
Range: E. Asia - Taiwan.
Habitat: Woodlands and thickets, especially by streams at elevations of 400 - 1400 metres in Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan and Taiwan Provinces[5].
Edibility: An oil is obtained from the seed[8].
Pollinators: Bees
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
In Leaf: Evergreen
Seed Ripens: Mid Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Dirr, Michael and Charles Heuser. The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. Athens Ga. Varsity Press, 1987.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Sheat, Wilfrid. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. St Martin, 1948.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Bird, R. Growing from Seed Volume 3. Thompson and Morgan, 1989.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Flora of China. 1994.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.