Miss Popularity

Before you enjoy that next sip of tea, take a moment to thank the plant whose humble leaves give so much satisfaction. Try as they might, the intrepid explorers of 18th century Europe could not get the plants of the tea camellia they brought home from the East, Camellia sinensis, to survive in the colder northern hemisphere climate.

 

 

But Europe had fallen in love with all things Chinese – not just tea – and they did succeed with C. japonica, a hardier variety.

 

Camellias are now a garden favourite. They have glossy, thick green leaves all year; gorgeous blooms of perfect form; and a willingness to be trained and clipped as topiary, hedges, espaliered on walls and fences, bonsai, standards and even in containers.

 

Best of all, they are low-maintenance survivors and it is no wonder landscapers recommend them as crowd-pleasing hedges and fail-safe garden shrubs.

 

From the first delicious whiff of the early-flowering sasanquas in autumn through to the reliable japonicas, spectacular large-flowered reticulatas and tiny miniatures (many of them sweet scented), camellias still bring something precious and exotic into our lives to lift the dreary days of winter.

 

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 You’ll need: Blooms, foliage, buds of your choice, a block of floral foam, a container or vase for display.

1 Pick the camellias well in advance and give them a drink, preferably overnight. Buy other flowers, such as the roses we used here, if you need a few extra blooms.

 

2 Cut a block of floral foam to fit your container; here we’ve used half a block. Soak it in water. Shape the foam to fit your container, ensuring the top of the foam juts above the rim. Pack underneath it if you need to boost the height.

 

3 Cut the camellia leaf stems at an angle, with about a 50mm split at the bottom, and remove all the lower leaves from the parts that will be in the foam. Push the stems into the raised foam at a downward angle to give a graceful outer perimeter.

 

4 Fill in with short pieces of foliage and robust blooms. We’ve used vireya rhododendron flowers and leaves and a sprig of nandina flowers to vary the form and texture. Use flower buds too. Position the fragile camellia flowers last. Cut them all at different lengths: put the longer, finer pieces around the outside and fill in the centre with larger flowers and leaves, cut shorter to give depth.