Camellias are quite robust potted plants. Care errors are almost exclusively responsible for illnesses. Even a pest infestation, which occurs occasionally, can hardly really damage a well-tended Camellia japonica. What diseases and pests are troubling the camellia.

Camellia leaves grow for three years and then fall off

Diseases of Camellia japonica

Only one disease is really dangerous for the camellia. Other abnormalities are not diseases, but symptoms that indicate incorrect location or poor care:

  • camellia plague
  • bud and leaf fall
  • leaf and blossom rot
  • Weak shoot

What to do about camellia plague

Camellia plague has only recently appeared in Europe. You can recognize the disease by the fact that the flowers rot from the inside and fall off after a few days. Always cut off rotting buds immediately and dispose of them with household waste.

Rotting or falling leaves and flowers

A camellia leaf grows on the plant for about three years and then falls off. That is normal. Something is only wrong if buds and leaves fall off in heaps or rot. This is almost always a maintenance error. The cause can be a location that is too dark or too warm, too much or too little moisture or too calcareous soil.

Affected plant parts are cut out. Place the Camellia japonica in bright enough light, but avoid too much direct sunlight. Check the plant substrate to see if it contains enough nutrients. Sometimes it is enough to repot the plant in fresh potting soil.

Water only moderately from late summer and avoid waterlogging the rest of the time. Administer liquid flower fertilizer (1.95€) without lime according to the instructions.

Pests that can occur on camellias

  • vine weevil
  • scale insects
  • thrips

The larvae of the vine weevil can cause lasting damage to the camellia. When the beetle appears, you should search the soil well and remove any larvae.

Scale insects can be rinsed off with a strong jet of water. Soft soap sludge or, as natural enemies, lacewings and ladybirds help against thrips.

tips and tricks

Nematodes, small roundworms, can also be used to biologically combat vine weevils and thrips. They eat the pest larvae from the inside and thus destroy them. You can get nematodes in specialist shops.

Category:

Vegetable garden