A Lovely Surprise Gift For A Gardener

I had a lovely surprise last weekend. We went to the farmers market and after getting all our veg and necessary items we wandered over to the plant stalls. I wasn't really considering buying any plants right now. Still, I always love looking around :)

I was looking at the beautiful Camellia plants. They are gorgeous with lovely shiny thick leaves and a nice growth habit and the blooms are so delicate looking and beautiful. I think they are as gorgeous looking as a rose but without the thorns. Anyway Hubby is always full of surprises and is not really an avid gardener like me (-yet :) )  So he just said I am getting you one for a present! Choose which one you like.

Isn't that sweet of him! I am a lucky lass. No arguments here, well you do not have to say "choose a plant" to me twice! So I started looking at the plants and what colour blooms are available. Hubby leaves this up to me as he knows I know what I am looking for.

We already have a pink Camellia. You can see the beautiful petals falling to the ground like confetti in this photo with the blackbird.

 Much of our back garden is going to be mauves, purples, pinks, whites, blues, very relaxing chilling out colours, so I needed a colour that would look right. 

We loved the red Camellia but it was a bit too vibrant then I saw a pure white bloom that I just knew would fit into an area of the garden that needed a white flower. So we took that one home and planted it yesterday!

We planted it in a sheltered spot, where it will not get exposed to too much wind or more importantly the morning sun. Our other one got burnt petals from it and we had to move it, so now I would always plant Camellias in a place away from the morning sun. It will get some afternoon sun but that is alright. 

They hate their roots sitting in wet soil so its best to add grit and compost to the planting hole. We planted it with lots of good compost for good drainage and gave it a nice mulch too and a long drink. It will look gorgeous when it grows and blooms.

I didn't take a photo because well it's just leaves at present so the photo is one taken earlier in the year of the beautiful pale pink bloom of our current mature Camellia in flower peeping through all its gorgeous glossy green leaves.

For a Gardener, there is no greater gift than a flower, Tree, Shrub, Bulbs or Plants for the garden! It is always especially lovely to have pleasant surprises, isn't it? Camellias are so beautiful...

You can learn more about Camellias in this book

Camellias: The Complete Guide to Their Cultivation and Use

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