I agree with Sandy. Your plant suffered from a scale infestation earlier in the season and what you are looking at is the damage. The link below shows some pictures of scale damage to camellias (as well as other plants). It ususally affects the underside of leaves but can affect stems when the infestation is heavy.
Dormant oil emulsion should be sprayed when temperatures are between 40 and 85 degress F. Spray the top and bottom sides of leaves. Repeat again in Spring once the chance of freezing temps has passed.
Some suggestions: apply a refined horticultural oil like Bonide All Season Spray Oil, Ferti-lome Scalecide, Green Light Horticultural Oil Spray, or Ortho Volck Oil Spray in the spring. Spray two applications, 10 days apart. Again, spray when temperature are between 40 and 85 degrees and there is no danger of freezing temperatures.
Insecticides labeled for homeowner use against scale crawlers include acephate (Ortho Japanese Beetle Killer), malathion (Ferti-lome Mal-A-Cide, or Hi-Yield Malathion Insect Spray), cyfluthrin (Bayer Advanced Garden Power Force Multi-Insect Killer), carbaryl (Sevin 50WP or Ferti-lome Carbaryl Spray) and dimethoate (Cygon or De-Fend). As with all pesticides, read and follow all label instructions and precautions. You will probably need to reapply these after a few weeks too.
Luis |
Here is a link that might be useful: Scale Damage Info by the University of Florida
