Flowering Dates

[J07]

I know that Camellias are supposed to flower quite early, but I was astonished to find that one in the garden came into bloom a week ago. That is, only 2 weeks after the winter solstice. It is now in full flower and looking pretty impressive.

[Terminal Moraine]

Camellias where I live are rarely in bloom until about 14 weeks after the winter solstice, and 16-17 weeks after in some years. They also have to be grown in containers as it's a limestone area.

[osmposm]

I know that Camellias are supposed to flower quite early, but I was astonished to find that one in the garden came into bloom a week ago. That is, only 2 weeks after the winter solstice. It is now in full flower and looking pretty impressive.

J07, I think you'll find that there is a huge range in flowering times for Camellia varieties, depending on their parentage. Those with C.sasanqua and C.saluensis in their ancestry can be particularly early, and New Zealand is famous for its breeding of early ones. Indeed, I have a NZ-bred variety ('Kick-off') that mainly flowers in early spring, but after a cool, wet summer will often produce some blooms much earlier....certainly well before the winter solstice, and sometimes really in autumn!

Ossie

[SP1986]

This year I saw blooms in January, I dont think its climatically driven, I just think it's just something that occurrs sometimes, maybe something to do with pollination the previous year

[J07]

Cheers guys, it seemed pretty odd that it decided to flower during the coldest snap of the year. Interesting that it may not be driven by the climate.