Japonica Camellia – Not Blooming

Q: I have a Japonica camellia that normally blooms in January. Last December, it was loaded with buds, then the cold snap hit. It’s still full of buds but none have opened. Are they ever going to bloom?

A: I doubt it. Temperatures were plenty cold enough to freeze flower buds completely. Unless your camellia was somehow sheltered by a building, the buds are all dead. It’s easy to determine their status: split one in half and examine the center. Live buds will be thoroughly green; dead ones will have dark brown streaks.