amberroses is referring to the fact that camellias are starting to develop flower buds now and you may miss the bloomage if you transplant now. Plants that are moved will usually suffer from transplant shock and existing flower buds may be aborted during these stressful times. Depending on the type and variety, camellias can start in Sept-Oct & bloom well into March of next 2010 (or a little after that). The previous owner might be able to give you more accurate blooming times. Your success rate may be better if you do this while the plants are dormant, i.e., when Fall-Winter arrive and not while Summer is going strong. Choose a location that protects them from the hot afternoon summer sun. For example, select a spot that gets shaded at the same time as the current one does or gets shade starting around 11am-12pm. The sasanqua leaves will handle more sun than japonicas leaves do so keep that in mind too. The new location should be mulched with 3-4 of mulch and should have a sprinkler/drip system that can provide as much moisture as the existing location. Here is a link that might be useful: Camellia Information by the A. C. S.

The root ball may have dried out, tennesseestorm. Also, I could not identify any mulch near the base of the plant; what happened? My comments below assume that your soil is normal or clay. If your soil is sandy then you need to add about 30-50% more water than noted. Check the soil moisture manually to see how dry things are: insert a finger into the soil near the root ball to a depth of 4". If it feels dry then the plant needs water (this one time only, water 1.5 to 2 gallons; but normally, start with one gallon per watering in Spring and increase the amount and the frequency in the summer). If the soil feels moist or wet then do not water. If this area is windy, consider transplanting during the winter. When watering, try watering the soil a little (do not water the leaves), pause and then water again. Mulch (4 inches) will help maintain the soil sort-of-constantly moist and will aid greatly on days when there are wind advisories. Spread the mulch a little past the drip line; more if the location is windy. Luis

Whats bothersome is that many of my plants come inside when the nights get cold, as they did a few months ago. I thought my orchids would benefit by growing under a tree, getting lots of air and making it easier for me to water. Little did I know they'd be crawling. I'm shocked how I couldn't drown the ants. I have a large 55 gal. drum I use as a rain barrel. Since we haven't had rain forever, it is only a third full and full of tadpoles (don't ask). Anyway, I dumped the orchid, in the wood basket, down into the water thinking the ants would drown. They immediately started running up the hanging wire onto my hand. I never saw so many charging ants. Some had wings and they were swimming across the barrel running up the sides heading straight for me. None drowned and the tadpoles didn't even eat them. I know they all got out. I left the orchid floating for hours. It was still full of ants when I pulled it out. How the heck do you get rid of these insects? How would I bring the plants in when the weather turns cold? Having second thoughts about those tomatoes... Jane

A pic would help you get suggestions about the spots. You can't spray for or against anything unless you know if and what you have, or are expecting something in particular. We don't spray Camellias with anything but they do need to be trimmed because someone put them too close to the house 30 years ago. If shrubs fit where you put them, they don't need to be pruned, except very lightly and occasionally, to maintain form and overall shaping, or if you just like a formal, manicured look. Camellias are able to perform both ways and still bloom well.