Camellia japonica ‘Ballet Dancer’

Compact and vigorous, award-winning Camellia japonica ‘Ballet Dancer’ features great-looking, medium-sized flowers of full peony form, 3-4 in. wide (7-10 cm), with mixed petals and petaloids (small petals). The creamy-pink petals gradually turn brilliant coral at their edge, creating a lovely display. The outer guard petals are quite wide and taper to a point. The exquisite flowers are happily produced in mid-season (January to March in the Northern Hemisphere; June to August in the Southern Hemisphere). Bushy, the luxuriant evergreen foliage of glossy, dark green leaves is handsome year-round.

• This medium-sized evergreen shrub has an upright, compact habit. It grows up to 6-12 ft. tall (180-360 cm) with a spread of 6-10 ft. (180-300 cm)
• Winner of the prestigious Award of Garden Merit of the Royal Horticultural Society.
• This plant is best grown in part shade to full shade in consistently moist, acidic, organically rich, well-drained soils. Provide a site sheltered from cold, dry winds as buds and flowers may be damaged by cold winds. Protect from the early morning sun and the direct hot summer afternoon sun.
• May be attacked by aphids, scale insects, and vine weevil
• Mass in mixed shrub borders for dramatic winter blooms. Great flowering shrub for woodland gardens or as a screen and hedge. Perfect as a specimen plant and may be effectively grown in tubs or large containers.
• Apply a root mulch (leaves or shredded bark)
• Prune after flowering. Prune to thin branching and control size and shape.

Camellia japonica is the pre-eminent species of the genus and counts over 30 000 cultivars in a wide array of flower forms and colors. The blooms can reach 5 in. across (12 cm) and create a gorgeous floral display from late winter to spring. They range in color from pure white to soft pink to dark red and may be single, semi-double, double, formal double, or full peony form. Slow grower, this broadleaved, evergreen shrub may grow up to 25 feet (7.5 m), but more often to 6-12 feet (180-360 cm) with a spread of 6-10 feet (180-300 cm). Its shapely habit, handsome, glossy foliage, and fabulous flowers have attracted gardeners for hundreds of years in Asia. Long-lived, some Japanese camellias, around the emperor’s palace in Japan, are known to be more than 500 years old. Unfortunately, Japanese camellias are not always cold-hardy (USDA Hardiness Zone 7 – 9).