The White Camellia Plant – A Comprehensive Guide

There’s no escaping the swoony beauty of the white camellia plant (Camellia japonica), known for its white flowers and historical meaning and significance. An evergreen perennial shrub found in the Camellia genus, the white camellia is loved for its ability to beautifully fill garden beds while still carrying the same depth of symbolism the red camellia is known for. Your garden can be transformed with a handful of delicate white camellia blooms to add both an ornamental rain of fluff and an association to its deeper meanings. The key, of course, is understanding how to grow and maintain a white camellia plant. This complete guide to white camellias will explore the history and deeper meaning of the plant, along with how to plant and care for it.

The History and Symbolism of the White Camellia Plant

The plant is indigenous to East Asia, although it has long been cultivated and appreciated in China, Japan, and Korea. The genus Camellia is named for the 17th-century born-in-Moravia Jesuit botanist Georg Kamel, but the plant itself was known in Asian cultures long before it was introduced to Europeans. The white camellia, in particular, is culturally and symbolically significant.

Symbolism in Different Cultures

The white camellia is revered in Chinese culture for its purity and perfection and, symbolized by the formal title báimò huā, it’s associated with ‘pure womanhood’. This title is sometimes paired with the complimentary epithet zhēngyán gēngjīn, which associates the camellia with the feminine virtues of ‘loyalty, honesty, and pure beauty’. The reputation of the white camellia as a flower that embodies rarefied femininity in both literal and metaphoric terms is a cultural phenomenon that has spread across East Asia. In Japanese, the camellia is known as tsubaki and also carries associations of purification and the spiritual as well as material perfection of divinity. Its white form, with its immaculate petals, is a prized favorite for use in temples. The tradition of dressing up statues of the Buddha or other spiritual figures with white camellias is an integral aspect of Japanese temple culture, as the blossoms are believed to bring good luck and prosperity.

It became the favorite camellia of the Victorian era in the West, where it represented worship and worshipful regard. While it was given as a gift of regard and deference, today it is commonly associated with the suffrage movement; in New Zealand, the white camellia was adopted as a symbol of the women’s suffrage movement there.

The White Camellia in Literature and Art

The white camellia gained its own literary and artistic legacy too. It is perhaps best known as the flower carried by Alexandre Dumas’s heroine, the prostitute Marguerite Gautier in the novel La Dame aux Camélias, where it symbolizes her essential purity in a tempestuous life and gave the white camellia its popular connotations of unrequited love and tragic beauty.

From watercolors on Japanese papered scrolls to funerary stone carvings in China, the pure white blooms of the camellia have been a favorite subject to represent the glossy leaves and scent of the simple flowers.

Choosing the Right White Camellia Variety

There are a number of different kinds of white camellias, and each one brings to the table differing attributes. When thinking about a white flowering camellia to add to a garden, the best course of action is to consider carefully bloom size, growth habit, and climatic adaptability.

Popular White Camellia Varieties

• Camellia japonica ‘Alba Plena’: One of the most recognizable white camellias, this variety has large double blooms similar to roses. After a flurry of pale pink blossoms over Christmas, ‘Alba Plena’ produces large, pure white blooms in late winter-early spring. Grow ‘Alba Plena’ in a shaded site with well-drained soil.
• Camellia sasanqua ‘White Doves’: Almost as busy as its more famous cousin, this is a good alternative for small gardens or containers. Unlike C. japonica, it has smaller, single flowers that open their petals in the fall, so it’s not as lustrous.
• Camellia japonica ‘Nuccio’s Gem’: Another top performer, with heavily formal double blooms that last a long time and often make another Camellia japonica cultivar – ‘P free’ – look positively wilted in comparison. Good for feature planting with its striking appearance.
• Camellia reticulata ‘White Empress’: Excellent for those who want large (25cm-diameter) semi-double white flowers and can afford a slightly warmer environment and lime-free, well-drained soil.

Climate and Soil Requirements

White camellias can be grown outside in the USDA hardiness zones 7-9 (though some varieties can tolerate zone 6 down to –10°F, with a little pampering). They prefer a light, well-drained soil that’s slightly acidic (with a pH between 5.5 and 6.5). Full sun is too harsh for camellias. They do best in a lightly shaded spot with morning sun and afternoon shade. A few varieties, such as Camellia sasanqua, are quite sun tolerant.

Planting White Camellias

Planting white camellias is a task that requires planning to make sure that the plantation is successful and established. There are steps that should be followed to plant your new white camellia plant.

1. Select a location for the camellia plant that receives partial afternoon shade and good air circulation.
2. Determine the desired height and width of your camellia plant.
3. Decide the distance you desire between each camellia plant. For example, if you plan to plant ‘Camellia ‘Silver Prince’, you will want to create a six-foot space between each plant.
4. If planting in the winter, place the container at a 45-degree angle, allowing the roots to settle for a few weeks. Fill in the root ball until the base of the plant is level with the soil surface.
5. If planting in late spring or early summer, prep the planting site by thoroughly loosening the soil and removing any rocks and sharp debris.
6. Dig a hole that is three times the width of the container and as deep as the camellia plant’s root ball.

When to Plant

Generally, the cooler seasons of the year — that is, autumn and early spring — are the best times to plant camellias, and their appropriate dormancy period, when the plant is not in its vigorous growing phase, makes them prime transplant candidates for successful establishment of the root system before the onset of stress during hotter summers or colder winters.

Site Selection and Preparation

Find a location in shade and away from harsh winds, but don’t plant in a low spot where water might collect; camellias dislike wet soils. Before planting, loosen the soil to a depth of 12-18 inches and introduce some organic matter such as compost or peat moss to improve the drainage and fertilizer value.

Planting Steps

• Dig the hole: Your hole should be twice as wide and no deeper than the root ball of your camellia plant. The root ball should sit level with, or slightly above the soil surface.
• Placing the Plant: Hoist the camellia out of the container and into the hole. Make sure the plant stands upright and that the root ball has not been damaged during the process.
• Backfill Plant Hole: Put the soil back into the hole, firming the soil around the root ball to remove air pockets. Water the plant thoroughly to help settle the soil.
• Mulch: Spread a layer of mulch 2-3 inches deep around the base of the plant, leaving a few inches around the trunk to avoid rotting. Mulching helps keep the soil moist, prevent weeds, and keep the soil temperatures steady.

Caring for White Camellias

White camellias must also be nurtured by watering, fertilizing, pruning, and resolving pest problems once they are planted in the ground.

Watering

Keep the soil around camellias moist and consistent, especially in their first few years of growth. Water deeply once a week through the growing season, maintaining an even moisture level but not soaking the soil. Increase watering during hot, dry weather. Water at ground level to avoid splashing the trunk and green stems with water, to prevent leaf spots and other fungal diseases.

Fertilizing

Keep acid-loving camellias happy by feeding them regularly with fertilizer formulated for acid-loving plants. Apply fertilizer early in spring just before new growth starts to occur and again in midsummer. Don’t fertilize after late summer, since this can trigger new growth that won’t have a chance to harden off and toughen up before winter. Use fertilizer according to directions provided by the manufacturer regarding rates and application methods.