Moving a mature camellia.

Eden W
by Eden W
I planted a camellia between my breakfast room window and the deck stairs as my first home improvement 15 years ago. It was my first house and have never really planted anything before. I guess the camellia loved the spot. It is now about 10 feet tall and cramped into the little space. My painter told me to get rid of it because it is too close to the siding -- insects, may promote rotting siding, etc. Over the years, I have repeatedly pruned it so now it is lop-sided. That is, the part closest to the house has no branches so all the branches are looming over the deck stairs. I will have to remove the deck stairs to try to dig it out. The camellia has lots of sentimental value not to mention that it is a beautiful tree. I would like to transplant it. Is it feasible to do so?
  8 answers
  • 3po3 3po3 on Apr 06, 2012
    Eden, The International Camelia Society (who knew there was such a thing?) has some info here about transplanting: http://camellia-ics.org/_ics/faq/faq.htm Sounds like it's tricky, but possible. Good luck.
  • Douglas Hunt Douglas Hunt on Apr 07, 2012
    Could someone get to this area with a tree spade, Eden? You are probably going to need professional help to be able to do this. And you should definitely root-prune in advance of later transplanting.
  • Eden W Eden W on Apr 07, 2012
    Thanks for the link, Steve. I cannot easily get around the tree to root-prune without first taking my deck stairs off. Yeah, I have a 10 foot camellia cramped in a 4x6 space. I have planted four other camellias throughout my back yard over the years and they have not flourished as this one has. I was hoping to do the new deck and the transplant at the same time since so much is involved. Thanks, Douglas. I'll consult with a landscaper before I make the final decision about my beautiful tree.
  • Douglas Hunt Douglas Hunt on Apr 08, 2012
    Eden, if this is a favored tree, one way to keep it going would be through propagation, either by cuttings, grafting or air-layering. The American Camellia Society has the scoop on how to do it here: http://www.camellias-acs.org/display.aspx?catid=3,9,112
  • Eden W Eden W on Apr 08, 2012
    Wow! Thanks, Douglas! My camellia does not have many medium sized branches since I have been super pruning all these years. But it does have four big trunks. I will try air layering one of the trunks as well as do the root pruning as best I can. I will probably not be doing the porch until later in the year or next Spring since it is on the bottom of my to-do list so the camellia still has time. Thanks so much! I never knew this could be done.
  • Douglas Hunt Douglas Hunt on Apr 09, 2012
    Good luck, Eden.
  • Eden W Eden W on Apr 09, 2012
    Thanks, Douglas. I will let you know the outcome (in about a year!)
  • Patriciamaxwell69 Patriciamaxwell69 on May 13, 2015
    You might also consider pruning away the lower limbs on the four trunks up to 7-8 feet, then shaping the remainder into a tree. It may take a couple of years before it has decent form, but you'll still be able to enjoy it.