Camellia has brown leaves

Camellias are sensitive plants

Camellias belong to the tea bush family. Their origin is in East Asia in countries such as Vietnam, Nepal, China and southern Japan. Contrary to contradicting opinions, a camellia can also be cultivated outdoors in areas of Europe with mild winters. It can cope better with light frost than drought and sun.

Brown leaves after winter in outdoor plants are mostly due to midday sun or cool dry winds. Plant diseases and infestation with pests are rare and are mostly caused by incorrect care. Camellias do not like temperatures above 15 degrees, they need high humidity and lime-free water. If one of the factors is wrong, the plants often react weeks later by shedding their leaves.

Care of the plants

Camellias require few nutrients. Put the plants either in compost soil from the garden or in standard soil type P (pricking soil). This earth is poorly fertilized. Moor bed soil is also suitable for rhododendrons. Repotting is only useful every other year.

The plants thrive best in a slightly acidic substrate with a pH of around 5.5. Lime-rich water binds the acid, the soil becomes alkaline. If your tap water has a hardness of over ten dH (German degree of hardness), use rainwater for watering. If this is not available, filter the water or boil it off.

Rinse the plants daily with soft water. This increases the humidity and keeps the substrate moist. Uniform moisture is particularly important for healthy camellias.

You can fertilize the plants with any flower fertilizer, a special product is not required. Dilute the agent with twice the amount of water recommended by the manufacturer. It is fertilized weekly from the leaf emergence until mid-July at the latest.

Only trim the camellias when diseased shoots need to be removed or when it is getting too big. Any cut affects the bloom.

Place the plants in a bright, not sunny place. After the ice saints, potted plants are allowed outside until the beginning of November. If you want your camellia to be in the garden all year round, plant it out between the end of March and mid-July.

Caring for the camellia

measure	Hints
Location	bright, no sun Temperatures from 10 to 15 degrees
Substrate	Compost soil Standard earth type P (pikier earth) Bog bed soil (for rhododendrons)
to water	regularly, must not dry out no waterlogging
Fertilize	from leaf shoot until mid-July
cut	best never
Overwinter	Protect from sun and wind outdoors cool and bright in the house
Multiply	Seeds, cuttings, mosses, sinkers

Measures against brown leaves

The leaves of the camellia live an average of three years. It is perfectly normal for your plant to shed some of the leaves. If less than a third of the foliage is affected and the flower buds do not fall off, there is no need to take any action.

If the leaves show light spots and become paler, there is probably chlorosis. The cause is watering with too hard water. Enter sour compost from leaves or wood or alternatively peat on the soil of the camellia. Under no circumstances should you acidify with vinegar or lemon juice. Pour with soft water from now on.

Brown leaves and buds that feel dry are usually due to waterlogging, overfertilization, or sunburn. As mentioned, the mistake in the maintenance may have been a few weeks ago. If the soil is very wet, repot the camellia in dry soil. Do not fertilize in the near future.

Do not cut off the affected branches. Camellias do not tolerate pruning well. Usually the plants sprout again quickly after losing their leaves and then recover.

If you see brown spots in the middle of the leaves or notice a greasy coating on them, there is a fungal infection. This is caused by covering with foil or a location that is too dark. The leaves hang limply and only later turn brown.

Cut off the affected shoots. Immerse the tool in disinfectant solution (alcohol at 96 percent) after each cut. Dispose of the clippings in the household waste.

Measures for brown leaves

root cause	Signs	measure
Age-related leaf change	affects less than a third of the plant Buds do not fall off	no
Chlorosis	bright spots Leaves are pale	acidify with compost or peat substrate Pour with lime-free water
sunburn	brown leaves no other signs	no
Waterlogging	brown leaves Substrate wet	Repot in dry substrate
Overfertilization	brown leaves consider whether fertilizer was overdosed	do not fertilize
Fungal attack	greasy covering limp leaves	Cut off infected shoots and dispose of them

Camellias are a little tricky to look after, but the beauty of the flower is well worth the effort. Take particular care that the root ball never dries out completely.