Pruning Large Camellias
Atlantic Coast Camellia Society
Atlantic Coast Camellias, Vol. 47, #1
Spring 2000
Reprinted with Permission
The pruning of garden camellias is an art form applying certain techniques that conform to principles based on their growth habits. This article will briefly answer three basic questions on pruning: Why, When, and How.
Why?
A camellia, particularly Camellia japonica, produces an abundance of new growth that competes for all available light. As the tree continues growing outward and upward, it crowds itself with numerous interior branches growing in many directions, crossing over each other in the scramble of growth toward light. In older, unpruned camellias, many of these interior branches are dead inside, leaving an outside shell of leaves and twigs.
Upon parting the branches of a densely growing camellia, one sees a beautiful (or potentially beautiful) infrastructure. The trunk and branches are smooth and muscular. In fact, camellia wood is very strong and dense, supporting the adventurous pruner who climbs the tree to prune from within.
The following are brief reasons for pruning older untouched camellias: