In the quiet space after the excitement of fall fruits and foliage and just before the first blooms of roses. Winter-into-spring blooming Japanese camellias fill the garden with fresh color. Plus a bit of over-the-top storybook romance.
Camellia japonica blooms from late December through March (depending on the variety), making them the quintessential winter-blooming addition to the garden.
No garden with well-draining soil and a bit of shade should be without these remarkable flowering shrubs. (Morning sun and dappled afternoon shade are ideal conditions). Did we mention they’re a perfect fit for containers? And that the flowers are an excellent high-protein food for early pollinators? More? How about a fragrant one? Here are just a few to get you started. Visit your local garden center to see even more options. Find yours here.
Note: C. japonica’s cousins, the sasanquas bloom much earlier from September to December, again depending on the variety. Here are a few of our C. sasanqua favorites. Learn more about the difference between Camellia sasanqua and japonica and get camellia growing and care tips here.
Kramer’s Supreme Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
Deep red buds open to magnificent peony-like, rosy-red flowers with a delightful fragrance. An old mid-season favorite. Full shade to filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Fun Fact: Why are there so few fragrant C. japonica? Winter bloomers, they face little competition from other blooming plants that might to draw away pollinators. So, if scent is on your winter garden wish list, enjoy this one.
Winter-Blooming Camellias for Zones 6 and Up
Note: Most camellias prefer to be grown in zones 8 and above. However, a few have been bred to thrive in colder places. Consult with your local garden center about the best time to plant these. As depending on your particular situation, spring may be preferable to fall.
Spring’s Promise
Ice Angels® Camellia
Zone: 6 – 10
Hardy with large, vivid, rose-colored mid-to-late season blooms. Filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide, larger with age.
Use: Show-stopping evergreen hedge!
April Remembered
Ice Angels® Camellia
Zone: 6 – 10
Stately with semi-double pink flowers with golden stamens. Full shade to filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: Under mature oaks, conifers, maples.
Buttermint
Camellia
Zone: 7 – 10
Beautiful buttery-yellow, semi-double smaller blooms adorn stems mid-winter to spring. A fresh, light scent puts it over the top. Filtered sun. Up to 6′ tall and 4′ wide.
Use: Woodland or semi-shady spaces.
Early-Season Blooming Camellias
Kick-off the new year and banish any of winter's gloom with a early-blooming camellias. These will brighten all corners of the garden. Add some early-blooming hellebores for a totally dazzling show.
Silver Waves
Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
Large, silvery-white, yellow-centered, semi-double blooms contrast glossy dark green leaves. Full shade to filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: Bright blooms to light up shady spaces.
Nuccio’s Bella
Rossa Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
Look at those crimson-red petals! Abundant flowers open slowly over a long period for lengthy bloom season. Full shade to partial sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: Wonderful formal effect when massed.
Debutante
Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
Light-pink, peony-style blooms are a delightful contrast to the glossy, dark green leaves. Full shade to filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: Perfect for north side of house.
Mid-Season Blooming Camellias
As the garden begins to shake off the worst of winter, the next round of camellias start to open adding a luxe layer to the other earlier bloomers like flowering fruit trees and flowering shrubs such as Pieris and Daphne.
Mathotiana Supreme
Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
Memorably covered tip to toe with loads of huge double blossoms in a dazzling flaming crimson red. Filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: Ideal to cover fences and walls.
Nuccio’s Gem
Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
Exquisite, right? Look for abundant sparkling-white petals to unfurl from tight buds over a long season. Filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: Add height to formal borders.
Chandleri Elegans
Variegated Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
Spectacular, anemone-form, rose-pink blooms. Filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: Just lovely in a cottage setting.
Late-Season Blooming Camellias
Just as the roses, magnolias, and many flowering shrubs are coming on. Late blooming camellias, not to be outdone, wrap up their season with a final spectacular display. As the flowers subside you begin to once again appreciate the role of these elegant evergreen shrubs in the garden.
Swan Lake™
Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
Snow-white peony-like flowers dance on graceful upright branches against glossy, dense foliage. Filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: Can a privacy screen get any better?!
Pearl Maxwell
Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
Large clusters of shell-pink, double flowers cover this large, leafy beauty that’s both formal yet deeply romantic. Filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: Perfect candidate for an espalier.
Vestito Rosso®
Camellia
Zone: 8 – 10
A unique beauty bred from the original Nuccio's Bella Rossa with glossy, midnight red new foliage and large crimson flowers. Filtered sun. Up to 8′ tall and wide; larger with age.
Use: An elegant sceen or a statement container.
Learn More About Gardening with Camellias
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