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Should I plant an Atlas Cedar (cedrus atlantica)

iforgotitsonevermind

15 years ago

I'm looking for a specimen evergreen. C. atlantica and C. libani are in the running. As usual there is conflicting information on growth rate on the web.

In fact I find conflicting information on the same site. Take this, for example which says "slow" and this, which says 'glauca' is rapid growing. Is glauca really rapid growing?

Another thing that is conflicting is that same site says that atlas cedar is the least cold hardy cedar. I was under the impression that deodar cedar was in fact the least cold hardy cedar. I see those die back from time to time. So if that is the case maybe I shouldn't use Atlas cedar?

One thing that is not conflicting is that this is reportedly difficult to transplant with recommendations to plant container grown plants. I can't seem to find any container grown plants, only b&b. These are very expensive too. What specifically makes these difficult to transplant and should I take a chance with it? It's not like I can take it back if it doesn't survive transplanting so I hesitate to get one for that reason.

There's quite a few growing around my area but it seems like they have fallen out of favor as they aren't easy to get ahold of.

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Comments (6)

pineresin
15 years ago
Atlas and Deodar Cedars are about equally hardy, with extensive mortality if temperatures drop below -25Â°C. There are some selected Deodar Cedars that are hardier, down to about -30Â°C, but the most reliably hardy is Turkish Cedar (Cedrus libani var. stenocoma).

A healthy young cedar will typically grow 30-50cm/year.

Resin
scotjute Z8
15 years ago
My answer would be NO! Tried both Atlas and Deodar down here in blackland prairie soil and neither species would grow. pH is around 7.5 and assume it must be too alkline for them or too clayey or too hot or too windy or too something. I'm tired of finicky exotic conifers that don't grow and am sticking to natives. Your location/zone wasn't listed, so of course where you're at it may be different. On the other hand, there may be a reason they are out of favor there also.
There are a few in this area where pockets of different soil exist and these trees are attention-drawing as they get bigger. Actually more prevalent in the Texas hill country. However some Deodars have died at the tops. None of the smaller ones seems to be growing very fast.
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Thanks any of those trees would be good. I will make a note of them. I am going to put it near the deck, so I don't want one that would have a branches over hanging the deck or a fire danger problem. I never knew they could be so small. If it's near to the deck it would easier to run a cord out for Christmas lights, but maybe I can get solar powered ones? That should be the new thing in lights. But eventually, we are going to remove the deck anyway and make the deck smaller, so I can have more planting room. I like the tiny rock garden trees also, but they are very hard to find, the website said. They look like pin cushions. We have a lot of Monterrey Pines in San Francisco. They grow very fast and do a lot of damage to sideways the foundations of houses, and they are not very attractively shaped either. They even grow as weeds around here. We also have a lot of Norfolk Island Trees. They are big and people top them, and then they really look terrible. It's hard to see a healthy conifer in my area. The next most popular tree is the some kind of Cypress. I don't think we are as ideal as the Northwest for conifers.
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dricha
15 years ago
I say YES. As long as they have good drainage I would go for it. There are some nice Deodars on the blacklands in the Dallas area and they look fine. The Dallas arboretum has planted a handful of Blue Atlas Cedars and they seem to be doing well. The only problem I've seen is some sap sucker damage. Just make sure you choose a hardy one. There are some older trees(Deodars) that have had the tops removed due to cold damage.
Embothrium
15 years ago
Where successful non-dwarf forms become enormous in time, these are landmark trees.

During the 1990 winter here ("coldest in 30 years") I noticed damage to multiple large Himalayan cedars whereas Atlas cedars did not stand out as having a particular problem. So, I think there are some C. deodara in cultivation that are less hardy than C. atlantica.
iforgotitsonevermind
Original Author
15 years ago
I don't want the Deodara because they are too prickly. If you brush against one of those it's like dancing with a porcupine.

Thanks for the replies so far so we got 2 yeses and 1 no.
Embothrium
15 years ago
Himalayan cedar produces long, slender needles on arching shoots making it the least cactoid of the three. Cedar-of-Lebanon is the most vicious. There are Himalayan cedars on the market as C. libani cultivars, perhaps one of these is the "Cedar-of-Lebanon" you are considering.

A scarecrow habit Himalayan cedar has been common in recent years, invariably offered as C. libani 'Glauca Pendula' and variations thereof. C. deodara 'Repandens' has also been erroneously traded under C. libani 'Beacon Hill' and several other names.

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