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I found the Microcachrys tetragona pic below, and here is what Copilot has to say about it. Not sure if all of it is accurate, but the pic appears to show the female seed cones that look like mini strawberries :-)
Microcachrys tetragona, commonly known as the Creeping Pine, is an attractive dwarf conifer native to Tasmania. Here are some details about its growth:
- Growth Habit: Microcachrys tetragona has a low, creeping growth habit with straggling branches that can be 40-100 cm (15.7-39.4 inches) long.
- Foliage: Its foliage is remarkably similar to Diselma archeri, with tiny, thick, overlapping, scale-like leaves arranged in four rows along the branches, giving a square cross-section to the stem.
- Dioecious: Like Diselma archeri, Microcachrys tetragona is dioecious, meaning it has separate male and female plants.
- Male Cones: The male cones are small and inconspicuous, measuring 2-3 mm in length and borne on the ends of the branches.
- Female Seed Cones: The ripe female seed cones are only 6-8 mm long but become most conspicuous as the bract scales surrounding the seeds turn fleshy and scarlet in color.
- Growing Conditions: Microcachrys tetragona thrives in well-drained soil rich in organic matter (such as peat) and requires plenty of water. While it grows in full sun in its native Tasmania, light shade is more suitable at lower altitudes.
- Propagation: Propagation is possible from cuttings taken in either spring or autumn. These cuttings root well and can be used for propagation.
- Pest and Disease Tolerance: This species appears to be relatively free from most garden pests and diseases12.In summary, the Creeping Pine is a delightful dwarf conifer that adds charm to rockeries, pots, or trailing over garden edges. Its compact size makes it perfect for small spaces! 🌿🌲
When I replace the snowblower with the lawn mower near the front of my garage.
tj
Passiflora lutea and Passiflora affinis both get those splotches? There aren't any keys to ID them using leaves and stems. The only way to know for sure is to go see it when it's in bloom. Affinis and lutea have very variable leaves can be confusing.
Passiflora lutea with bizarre leaves.
Wow, that poor tree looks like its been stripped at the base by mice or something.
I love the leaves on Alta. They look so tropical and remind me of Ficus elastica.
It's that time of the year! The Pokeweed posts have begun. 😉
What has wiped out most of the mountain laurel in my area is deer. If you have any, save yourself the heartbreak.
41North, no offense, but do your own homework.
Getting back to climate maps for a moment, I was aware of the Sunset ones for the rest of the country. I haven't studied them for some years, but when I did way back one, my thought was it was a good start but probably not as precise as the original western ones. They seem to agree as they are only 'officially' making ones for the west again. https://sunsetplantcollection.com/climate-zones/
"but probably not as precise as the original western ones."
How are Western ones more precise? I have an older Sunset gardening book for the nation. Textual material related to each zone communicated, lowest average minimum, average maximums and heat zone (factored in), precipitation, humidity, growing season length, soil compositional, cloud coverage, fog, soil pH..., indicator plant species, etc. I still have that book. Certainly, better than a number from 3-10 that lumps Long Island with Little Rock, Arkansas. Maybe we mostly use a number system from 3-10 to market and sell plants, and people would be incredibly confused by dozens upon dozens of gardening zones, imagine reading those gardening labels!
Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia) from the bark pic.
The bark resembles Chinese elm, but the leaves don't confirm.
It probably doesn't matter but where in SoCal are you? Palm Desert? La Jolla? Big Bear? Boron?
Picture This, like other apps, is not particularly reliable imo. Double check ids it throws up.
Thanks beng!
Yes, I primarily went by the root crown to find level. It was a challenge because none of the trunk was close to being what you'd call 'straight'. So, it was a judgement call so to speak.
But I know how trees will keep themselves straight once they start growing and the crooked part will someday be the very base/bottom of the tree and the branches will eventually hide that.
I won't know until it grows some this season, then I can determine what the tree wants to do.
Judging by the way white spruce grows in my area, It could easily put on 6-8" of new growth this season.
The all-day rain we had yesterday has continued all night and into today, upgrading my opinion on how things might go this summer. :-)
Mine was about that size with the same corkscrew shape when I bought it 20 years ago. Seemed to take 5-7 years to start to take off, although I did move it once. Now it is about 8 feet tall but the corkscrew base remains for now.
tj
Totality is profound, a moment to appreciate our small place in the universe. We had a partial eclipse here, lots of crescents through pinholes.
Beautiful chartreuse color.
I didn't examine this Abies closely, too busy taking pictures. The display gardens at Sebright are overflowing with extremely rare and well-grown woody plants. That said, I would guess its one plant, I've seen a lot of mature dwarf conifers with this habit, spreading out on the ground, but then also reaching for the sky in one or two places, if the gardener allows it! I would guess the tallest part is about 4'.
Thank you ainn! I must wait until the revamp work is done before choosing plants but I’m leaning to yellow as that’s what was there & showed nicely - yellow grasses. This pic is from 2016 so things have changed. Dogwood in back replaced with yellow euyonomous & blue needle plant (podocarpus?) larger. We’re taking out the flat stones & replacing with 3 basalt columns, max 3’ high & a basalt basin for bird bath. Will reuse the flat stones in the base /bed of the rocked area. Will also move that chimney pot with the sedge in it. Having 12 year old pump replaced as will need more lift for height of colums. Goal is easier maintenance to blow off fir needles from the huge old growth firs over the fence. The flatter surface instead of just the rocks.
There are only 2 of these trees in the woods of the property of my workplace and they definitely grew there as volunteers but not visibly invasive. At least no where near as ailanthus or norway maples. Heck I see more pyrus calleriana seedlings than paulonias. This is just from my observation though and it may depend on where the tree is growing.
Oh, now that's something else! I have 'Skinner's Cutleaf' silver maple, that with each passing year increases in beauty. It's quite the effect to at night shine a flashlight up into the silvery underside of the lacy foliage.
FrozeBudd, yes, where I lived previously, there was a well-formed silver maple along a bike path paralleling a small stream, and the underneath was cooling shade but actually quite well lit up by the leaf undersides, kinda like a silvery cathedral.
Deer already ate my Norfolk, my A. araucana in the ground is fine, along with the A. bidwillii. OP said nothing about freezing temps, only snow. We have had snow here in the upper 40's. This species will be fine untiess temps remain below 40 for an extended time.
BillMN, any idea why that bee was attracted to the plastic bag?
This honey bee was visiting willow catkins in the wet meadow across the road (4/6/24)
An unknown fly species was also crawling through the willow catkins
Spicebush flowers are starting to open in the backyard. Another unidentified fly
what had the bag been used for? some odor or maybe the color. bees can be puzzling in their ways. i've kept bees for 16 years this go around & for 5 years back in the 70s & they still throw me a curve now & again.
A surprise visitor made an appearance on the willow catkins late this afternoon (4/6/24). Temp around 52F at the time
I've watching numerous types of conifers grow for the last 30 years and can say with confidence neither spruce or pine will regrow the branches or needles once they are abandoned because of competition (with minor exceptions). For all trees it's a race to the top and they will focus energy to grow vertically to get to the top for sunlight. Conifers are the planets original tree species and the tallest in America. Redwood, Douglas fir, Sequoia and cypress are all conifers.
25 years ago I trimmed lower branches from pine, blue spruce and Norway spruce up 10+ feet and they never grew back. I only witnessed a few attempts in all the years and remember because they were oddities to me (and the exception). But Spruce does hold their lower branches better than Pine, but pine will abandon lower branches even from it's own competition from above because there is better opportunity for sunlight at the top and where they focus growth.
Your trees are spruce. The difference is spruce grow individual needles and are very stiff. Pine grows needles in clusters. It's very unlikely the abandoned branches will ever grow back. If they were pines at least a quarter of the trees from the bottom up would be just trunks.
If the soil isn't frozen, and the tree is dormant, should be OK, in fact, these are the best conditions.
just wanted to know if this tree is picky about being moved, like some.. thanks
Transplanting should occur at or before the first hint of budswell for spring planting. In fall, transplant after leaves are killed by frost/freeze and protect new roots from freezing. If you don't have a strategy for protecting new roots, wait until spring.
Al
Sorry to tell you that, on the information supplied, nobody could definitively id these trees for you. To start with you don't tell us where in the world they are growing. That knowledge will eliminate a lot of possibilities. Platanus species is possible based solely on the shape but without closer pictures the task is extremely difficult.
The mounds are the root crowns that build up. There's prb'ly only a relatively thin layer of soil on them. Older trees commonly develop these root crowns.
i highly doubt the use of the term old growth ... pine are the weed trees of the forest.. they grow really fast.. they might only be as old as the house.. when was that built..
anyway.. and i will yell .... IF HERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE TREE>> THEN DONT GO SCREWING WITH IT AND CREATING A PROBLEM...
crikey man... put down the shovel and walk away.. no digging around the tree.. no excavating.. no bulldozing...
just go buy a lawn chair. or 2 .... and a a cooler.. a bottle of wine for momma .. and 12 pack for the cooler .. go sit under the tree.. and hate on your neighbor like the rest of us.. lol .. start dreaming about digging in his or her yard.. lol..
and leave your gorgeous trees alone... fix a problem.. dont create problems.. and never solve what isnt a problem ...
ken
Hey GG, i have one! so far it has survived. Our winters arent too harsh.. but some years, it can get down to as cold as -18 to -20 F.. that would be on the extreme end. it is going into it's 3rd year. Barely grows!
@Bengz, Hearts of Gold or Rising Sun? Im consisdering them. They grow fast
On the subject of pink kousas, I have always thought they looked unappealing, to put it mildly.
However when I visited Issima Plant Works and Sakonnet Garden in June of 2022, I couldn't believe how gorgeous the pink kousas along the coast of Rhode Island looked. I don't know what cultivars were involved but clearly they were 1) more commonly planted up there and 2)looked better in climates that stay 'chilly', by eastern US standards, in early summer...than they do anywhere around the mid-Atlantic. Of course this doesn't jibe with GG's account of not liking them in the PNW, but, first of all to each his or her own, second of all, there could be other temp, rainfall, or even soil differences at play. Maybe the PNW is too chilly, we're too warm, and coastal RI is just right? Around here all kousas seem to have their sepals quickly 'melt' from the June heat, it perhaps makes the pink ones uglier as they develop brownish off colors.
" Messy, gaudy, late to leaf out and late to bloom."
Agreed, and also incredibly invasive in parts of the eastern US. If people to have to 'rose of trailer trash Sharon' as I call it, at least plant the sterile cultivars!
The pink kousas of coastal RI seemed to have a very clear pink. Around here, it's the muddy or washed out look, too.
It certainly has lost its top at some point.
I thought the same thing OC. Almost looks like another might have been removed (died?) at some point (lower right).
Thanks beng!
The OP's (long gone, no doubt) question reminded me of something I've been meaning to whip up and post, once I found a quickie, free online flowchart creator. The one I found is called flowchart.fun.
I'd say you have Peony seedlings.
Also, I am planning to build a wet loving garden near a septic (around 10 feet away) is that far a away enough to plant a weeping pussy willow that only matures to 6-8 feet tall?
Silvics manual says:
Balsam fir has been reported as growing on soils of a wide range
of acidity. In the northern Lake States it is most common on cool,
wet-mesic sites with pH values between 5.1 to 6.0 (19). Optimum
growth occurs on soils where the pH of the upper organic layers is
between 6.5 and 7.0 (1). On gravelly sands and in peat swamps,
growth is comparatively slow (41).
My suggestion was to contact her personally directly, not via the Facebook group. Her email address at WSU is available on her website.
LOL!! My personal opinion is that Facebook is a massive waste of time. I do not belong nor do I have any desire to.
Your idea was not pulled out of thin air at all!! But it is somewhat outdated :-)) Horticulture is a science and like all scientific fields of study, data grows, changes and evolves with time. You will still see many references to pruning back before transplanting, just as you will about amending planting holes or painting or sealing pruning wounds. That doesn't mean these are still recommended practices, only that the current, updated information has not yet caught up to the authors.
Edith Bogue, Bracken's Brown, and Victoria are known to be good in New Jersey.
Victoria above
Edith Bogue above
P.S., NOT sure about a 6A climate, usually limited to 6B at least, but Victoria and Bogue will take a rare year with a -5 F. Most cultivars of Mg are good from 7 on up. Been growing grandifora in a banana belt northern area for over 30 years now, they have definitely gotten to be more robust, a few years ago, they started to self-sow in the yard from the cone seeds. Victoria, Bracken's and Bogue also good with SNOW loads, that is an important factor too.
Based on the information I've seen (from other sources as well as a number of discussions on Houzz) the general consensus seems to be that Brackens Brown Beauty and Edith Bogue are the hardiest varieties available, with Victoria also quite cold hardy but perhaps slightly less than BBB and EB. There is also a new introduction called 'BooneArb' that per the patent claims to be hardier than BBB and EB, but I don't think it is commercially available (or widely tested) yet.
Photo below of a young Victoria at the Chicago Botanic Garden (Dec 2023)
Definately Ptelea crenulata. It's very similar to the eastern Ptelea trifoliata. They are in the citrus family, and they are hostplants, for some species of Swallowtail Butterflies.
There are several species of Yucca in Texas. Yucca rupicola looks like the closest match to me.
Wow, what amazing zombie thread bumping skills you have!
Hhhmmmm.
The current molecular genetic phylogeny seems to think C. obtusa of Japan is closely related to C. lawsoniana.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chamaecyparis
I knew that the 'Alaska Cedar' was a different genus.
Now you've done it david. You've finally reached the end of my vast storehouse of knowledge, LOL!
But I appreciate your comments and always learn something new every day and that's why we do this imo.
I found this article quite interesting:
' Chamaecyparis species are relatively easy to propagate from cuttings, so grafting is seldom used as a propagation method. Chamaecyparis obtusa (hinoki cypress) is compatible with Chamaecyparis lawsoniana and Thuja occidentalis. Since Chamaecyparis lawsoniana has disease problems it is not used in North America as an understock. In Europe it works well but eventually creates a deformed graft union when it develops a much larger diameter than the cultivar.
eta: And: Chamaecyparis lawsoniana has limited use in America due to disease entering the root systems. Grafting could prevent this problem and allow wide use of hundreds of cultivars throughout this country. However, any understock used is overgrown by the cultivar.
https://robertfincham.com/Musings/understk-scion
beng,
I have a slim steel rod with a handle, ~2ft. long, that I use to test frozenness of the soil.
Right before the snow, I could tell the top layer, 2-3 inches of wood mulch was on its way to being froze solid but when the rod penetrated that, the soil beneath was still soft/thawed.
Now with the warmer weather, I can tell the snow that's melting around both of the 'close to the house' locations is going directly into the ground (no runoff).
There may even be some root growth occurring albeit very slow thus far.
All 4 plants are still nice shades of green and still dormant. 🤞
4-17-2024;
'Welcome to the dark side, there's no going back!'
Wait! I thought this was a joke!
I was walking by the plants at the Walmart parking lot and the reality set in.
First, I told myself, I don't need another juniper, then I thought, it's only $8.95, next I picked it up then started walking, I had a blank look on my face (but smiling). Just like radar controlled I ended up at the cashier. Automatically opened my wallet and handed her a ten-dollar bill. I kept hearing the plant saying 'Buy me... buy me....
Weird but I was happy and needed something to replace those lilies out front that the deer won't leave a lone.
Juniperus Squamata 'Blue Star".