Camellia sasanqua ‘Julie Anne’

Camellia 'Julie Anne' (Camellia sasanqua 'Julie Anne') is a privacy hedge that flowers. It reaches about 3m tall and 2m wide, holds glossy evergreen foliage all year, and opens soft pink blooms through autumn and early winter when the rest of the garden has gone quiet. It also takes part shade, which few flowering hedge plants manage.

Why you'll love it

• Colour in the off season. Soft pink blooms carry from autumn into early winter, when little else in the garden is out.
• Comfortable in part shade. Sasanquas cope with shade better than most hedging shrubs, so a south facing fence line is genuinely viable.
• It clips cleanly. Dense growth and small leaves hold a crisp face, whether as a flat hedge, a cone or a standard.
• Tough where it counts. Frost hardy, wind tolerant and salt tolerant, and not toxic to cats or dogs.

Where it works best

Hedging and screening. Plant 1m apart in a single row. At that spacing the plants knit together without competing, and you can hold the finished hedge anywhere between 1.5m and its full 3m.

Pots and courtyards. A pot 500mm or wider keeps it near 1.5m, which suits a matched pair at an entry. Potted camellias dry out faster than people expect over summer.

Topiary and feature planting. Single plants shape well into a ball or a standard, and unlike a clipped conifer this one flowers.

Growing Camellia 'Julie Anne' in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun to part shade. In subtropical and hot inland gardens, morning sun with afternoon shade stops the flowers scorching. It suits subtropical, warm temperate and cool temperate gardens and is frost hardy once settled, but not the wet tropics or arid inland.

Soil. Slightly acidic, free draining and rich in organic matter. Work compost through the backfill and raise the bed on heavy clay. Keep 75mm of mulch over the shallow roots and clear of the stem.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week for the first two summers, then settle into moderate watering. Late summer matters most, because that is when the flower buds form and a dry spell then costs you blooms. Feed a camellia and azalea fertiliser once flowering ends.

Pruning. Trim straight after the last flowers drop. Buds set on spring and summer growth, so a late trim removes the coming display. Growth is slow, which means less work than a fast hedge but more patience early on.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown as tube stock, in packs of six 200mm pots or three 250mm pots, and as single 300mm and 400mm plants. Tubes and 200mm plants are young and are the value choice for a long boundary, though a tube takes three to four years to close into a hedge. The 300mm and 400mm plants arrive bushy and save a year or two.

Buds and open flowers sometimes drop after transit, which is normal rather than a fault. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Everything you need to know about camellia bushes
• Compare the full camellia range
• Other screening plants in the 2m to 4m range
• More plants that are safe around cats and dogs

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it for a hedge?

One metre apart in a single row. Closer spacing does not close the gap any faster and makes feeding and watering harder as the plants mature.

Will it flower in a shaded position?

Yes, though less heavily. Part shade protects the blooms in hot districts, while full sun gives the heaviest flowering. Deep shade under dense trees is too dark.

When should I prune it?

Immediately after flowering ends, usually late winter. Next season's buds set on spring and summer growth, so a summer or autumn trim costs you flowers.

Is it safe for dogs and cats?

Yes. Camellias are not toxic to cats or dogs, so it suits a yard where pets chew foliage.