Camellia japonica

We have one of these double red Camellias on the left side of our driveway in the middle of a large wooded space. It is in full bloom right now, and it is the star of that whole section of our property. You can't miss it, coming or going. If I can identify exactly which variety it is, I would buy a couple dozen of them and fill that space completely. I love the red bloomer and I love the double bloomers. I think these 4 inch blooms look a lot like peonies.

A fellow landscaper tried to teach me a trick many years ago about how to easily identify japonica from sasanqua Camellias. Japonicas bloom in June (spring/summer), and Sasanquas bloom in September (fall/winter). But what season does March 3rd fall into? Technically, it is still winter, but my Camellia is undoubtedly japonica. The way I know certainly is by the size of the leaves. Camellia japonica leaves are 4 inches long, about twice the size of sasanqua foliage.

Whichever species of Camellia you might have, they are a beautiful shrub in any garden. Setting aside the eye-catching blooms, the plant itself is evergreen and present getting almost as wide as it gets tall while the foliage on both species is decidedly dark green and glossy.

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