Alba Plena Camellia

Follow a regular watering schedule during the first growing season to establish a deep, extensive root system. Provide well drained soil, rich in organic matter. Feed with an acid fertilizer after bloom. Keep roots cool with a thick layer of mulch. Pruning time: winter after flowering.

Camellia makes a striking shrub as a single focal point anywhere in the landscape. It is particularly beautiful near the front door where visitors can appreciate flowers at close range. Use in a protected place in the garden, such as an east facing entryway, and be rewarded with handsome evergreen foliage and mid to late season white flowers. Both the blooms and foliage are fine additions to indoor winter cut flower arrangements. Beautiful as a foundation plant, in a container or as part of a Zen tranquility garden. Great as an espalier to cover walls.

The outstanding, formal blooms on this Camellia pair best with other garden classics such as Boxwood hedges, Juniper topiaries from Monrovia's Italianate Collection, as well as fragrant Gardenias. To stay true to its Asian heritage, plant with Azalea, Heavenly Bamboo, Japanese Maple, Fern, Dogwood and Rhododendron. For those shady beds close to your outdoor patios, create a moonlight garden with white blooming Astilbe, Hydrangea, and Clematis. Provide some filtered shade with small stature, white blooming trees like Apple Serviceberry, and Magnolia.

Camellias are closely related to the tea camellia that gives its family the name, Theaceae. The genus was named for a Jesuit missionary, Georg Kamel, who first cultivated these plants in the Philippine islands in the 17th century. However, Camellia japonica is native to Japan, Korea and Taiwan, imported into the Philippines long before Kamel's time. The plants did not bloom in England until 1815 with Alba Plena among the earliest cultivars that may have arrived at Kew in its original form or was among the early crosses. It remains the gold standard for all double white camellias and has stood the test of time. Red camellias are a symbol of wealth and white Camellias signify loveliness. Camellias represent longevity and faithfulness and have long been a primary floral component in Asian weddings.