- Mature height
- 2m to 4m
- Mature width
- 1.5m to 3m
Camellia sasanqua ‘Snowcloud’ is an evergreen shrub with soft white flowers produced in quantity across a dense, naturally tidy frame. The small glossy leaves make a fine textured backdrop and the petals fall cleanly as each bloom finishes. Flowering runs through autumn and winter, when little else in the garden is in bud.
Morning sun with afternoon shelter suits it, in acidic, well drained soil kept evenly moist and topped with organic mulch. It puts on 20 to 50 centimetres a year and needs less shaping than most sasanquas. Established plants take light to moderate frost. Poor drainage is the one condition it will not forgive.
Its tidiness makes it a low input hedge, a soft screen along a fence, or an espalier where a flat green panel with white flowers is wanted. It is equally at home as a single shrub in a shaded courtyard bed. The practical gain is dense privacy without a heavy pruning schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions
About Snowcloud Camellia
What is Camellia sasanqua ‘Snowcloud’?
A white flowering sasanqua camellia, evergreen and shrubby, in the Theaceae family. ‘Snowcloud’ is grown for the sheer number of soft white blooms it carries and for its naturally neat habit, which needs less correcting than many camellias. It is used for hedging, screening and courtyard planting across temperate Australia.
How big does Snowcloud grow?
It matures at roughly 2 to 3 metres tall and 1.5 to 2 metres wide. Most hedges are held at 1.5 to 2 metres with one trim a year. It reaches full size slowly, over eight to ten years or more, so a planting stays in proportion for a long time.
When does it flower?
Autumn into winter, roughly March to July in most Australian gardens. Warm temperate and subtropical areas see flowers earlier, cool temperate districts later. The blooms open in successive flushes rather than one burst, and spent petals drop rather than hanging on, so the plant stays presentable through the whole season.
Does it need sun or shade?
Morning sun with afternoon shade is the sweet spot. Sasanquas are the sun tolerant side of the camellia family, so full sun works in cool and coastal districts provided the roots stay moist and mulched. Heavy shade cuts flowering back sharply and leaves the plant open and leggy.
Is it safe around pets and children?
Camellias are not considered toxic to dogs, cats or people, and they carry no thorns or irritant sap, which is why they turn up so often in family gardens and school grounds. As with any plant, discourage children and animals from chewing foliage, and keep fertiliser granules off the surface of the mulch.
Is it drought tolerant?
Only moderately. Once established with a good mulch layer it will ride out several dry weeks, but the shallow fibrous roots mean it is not a plant for unwatered gardens. Dryness during summer causes flower buds to drop before they open, so autumn watering matters as much as summer watering.
How do I care for Snowcloud?
Water deeply rather than lightly, mulch to about 75 millimetres, and feed with a camellia and azalea fertiliser after flowering finishes. Prune at the same time, taking out any inward growing branches to keep air moving through the plant. Check for scale and sooty mould in still, shaded positions.
