Very nice

Is that your tree Jim? Looks taller than 25 feet? (per your post a few months ago)

How 'northern' in New Jersey? Can you give us a county?

Darned if I know but, yes, “feels” like 30. One of these days I’ll actually measure. 20 years now from when the seed sprouted indoors. This tree is named “Mendocino”. Top Easternmost.

Maybe the snow-covered Adirondack will help scale.

Jim Horton we bought ours in Seattle Washington at a gift shop as a sapling, it was about 4-5" Tall now it's 2ft. But has seemed to stopped growing, we started it in a pot, then moved it outside, it's been at 2ft. For a while but we have been getting a lot of rain, how much rain can it handle?? Thank you it's a coastal redwood.

Michael, my understanding is they like to have their roots near the surface. The first several winters we wrapped it loosely in burlap and cedar-mulched around it. Come warmer weather we’d take most of the mulch away. The first couple winters the tree came out of the winter looking dead. But after a month or so there’s be lots of new growth. It’s at a high-point on our property so the ground drains fairly well. And the tree likes to be wet in its branches and trunk but I’m not sure about soggy ground. After the first couple years of acclimating to to four seasons it has put on at least a foot a year. It was about a foot when we moved it outdoors, first in an insulated pot, then after a year put it in the ground. There has been a canopy of mature red and white oaks above it and a pair of Leland spruces to its south which seem to have acted as screens against harsh weather. It only gets a few hours of morning sun before the canopy offer dappled protection for the rest of the summer days. I have two smaller ones on the property one of which has lost its higher branches a couple times and is more a bush than a tree and the other one that was planted amongst the rhododendron as a test to see if they would offer a better protection. Instead the lack of sun has rather stunted its growth. So there are about all the things I can tell you about our experience with our seed-started Coastals. We specifically wanted to start them from seed thinking that the tree would fair better growing-up in its future environment. To be clear, though, they were started indoors in a south facing terrarium window. Whew!

Rather amazing east coast coastal redwood, Jim Horton. I remember one about the same size nestled between buildings on the University of Maryland campus. Some said the protection/shelter from the buildings is why it grew.

go Terps.

Just dredged up some old emails from 10 to 15 years ago where I was tracking east coast redwoods.

Beng, I've seen a couple 50+' redwoods in the DC suburbs, and know of a 3rd. I wouldn't say they need protection once established. OTOH it's telling that of all the Philly area public gardens, only a couple big ones are known there, and only 1 pre-dating the super awful winters of the late 1970s. That is the Barnes tree that was planted in 1971. (And FWIW their now dead monkey puzzle was planted in 1960. Man oh man that thing was growing slowly! The Silver Spring tree is growing much faster. This info from emails I exchanged with the director of the arboretum in 2011.)

I have mentioned an old book I found in the UDel library about Delaware Valley public gardens. It mentions that 6 Philly area gardens had tried to plant redwoods, but only one was surviving at the time of the writing which I think was the 1940s. Wherever that was, it is apparently gone now. I had never looked in their database, but Longwood has a living accession apparently but planted in the 1980s. I've never seen it there. Their big Sequoiadendron died recently.

That makes the most northerly, oldest redwoods the William and Mary ones planted in the mid 1950s, closely followed by the North Carolina trees in the article below. (a little older, and little less northerly!), followed by the Barnes tree of 1970. It's very hard to believe they weren't tried somewhere on Long Island or in the NYC metro or northern NJ, yet none are known in public gardens at least. The winters of 79 and 85 were incredibly cold and damaging to plants. Probably the worst since 1934.

I also found this link to an interesting article:

http://www.carrborocitizen.com/flora/2012/08/chapel-hills-mystery-tree/

So it seems to me like the line for long term adoptability, with clones presumably not selected for hardiness, is somewhere between SE VA and Philly!

Per my re-reading of emails, I've established that 'Swarthmore Hardy' - confusingly - is EITHER 'Chapel Hill' or a clone of the Barnes tree. Of course it's not impossible the Barnes tree came from cuttings of 'Chapel Hill', just at an earlier time. Because the 2 redwoods ever at the Scott Arboretum, according to an email from the director a few years ago, came from the Coker and the Barnes. I have both and they look identical but that hardly means much. I think SH was named and released by another academic horticulturalist in the Philly area, not affiliated with Swarthmore, but I forget his name now.

The article above mentions Dr. Venable wanted to share with other east coast gardens, so it's even possible that the 6 Philly area trees mentioned in the book I read were collected and shared by him and Coker around 1909.

David. Thanks for this. Fascinating!

Jan 1985 cold wave in southwest VA (-20F at my place, -30F at nearby Mountain Lake) killed all the mimosas and cryptomerias there.

Yeah, the giants seem much more tolerant to the cold versus the Coastals.

No doubt to that. Please read my comments above. The heat and humidity of the deep South greatly discourages the giganteum. Actually never seen one in my travels and my few attempts to grow them failed. A big giant in Mass. Coast redwoods VERY tolerant of heat and humidity.

Still looking for Pomaria Nursery catalog from 1845 that offered the coast redwood. Several large ones in North and South Carolina that surely came from Pomaria Nursery.

Still - I have only tried the Coastals from seed. In California they are pretty adaptive - a fallen tree grows new trees from itself . . . so I figure the seeds adapt to to "trauma" - a new environment.

So I went and bought some Miracle Gro spikes and some mulch I added the Miracle Gro spikes in the ground and covered the ground with mulch do you think it will help? How long before I notice a difference? I put like 6 Miracle Gro spikes around the base of the tree, how long before the Miracle Gro kicked in???? The area I have set around the tree is about 4ft X 4ft

Michael,

1) Are the spikes for evergreens/conifers?

2) Holly-Tone might better serve

3) That seems like a LOT of feeding. Sometimes less is more. IMO

Jim

Be gentle, it would probably just appreciate plenty of water (but not waterlogged) and sun more.

And remember - they drink more from what above the ground than what's in the ground. Mist them whenever you've the hose spraying.

I'd say that this probably isn't the case, but it is dewy most summer mornings around here, so not really sure. That said, I've never misted mine. A quick google search suggests 30-40% is absorbed through the canopy.

It isn't true that they need it. And experiments have shown that where it does happen, although some of the condensation is absorbed directly, most of it falls to the ground where...guess what...it behaves as rainfall would.

They grow in plenty of places that are *almost* blistering dry in summer - maybe not Death Valley (LOL) but the Central Valley of CA, and the mountains of Greece - as long as their feet are "wet" with some access to water. The only ones that looked good to me around Davis, CA, for example, were planted adjacent to ponds or waterways. If Peter were still around from the land down under, I'd bet he would know of some in South Australia. @shaxhome (Frog Rock, Australia 9b)..seen any outside the ultra-salubrious immediate coastal areas and adjacent mountain ridges?

Apparently you can "at" people here as you can in slack. We will see if it works...

Update: talks about growing them in a fairly mild part of AU...but very interesting nevertheless: http://www.agroforestry.net.au/main.asp?_=Californian%20Redwood

davidrt...according to this article, they do grow here, even in the NSW Tablelands, where I live. Must say, that's news to me, as I've never seen one!

There's also evidently an old (1930s) plantation in Victoria's Otways, which I think you've passed through...

"While it was a huge treat to see trees growing in the wild I had previously seen only in gardens and parks, you can enjoy the pleasure of walking in a Redwood forest without crossing the Pacific Ocean, as a splendid grove of Coast Redwoods was planted as a softwood logging experiment in the Aire Valley in the Otway Ranges in Western Victoria in the 1930s.

The trees are now about 60 metres high, and the Great Otway National Park was recently expanded to include them. As wood production is banned in the park, they are now safe from logging.

Coast Redwood and Wellingtonia both grow well on the NSW Tablelands, especially in areas of high rainfall. They can be planted from now until the end of winter. They like deep soil with good drainage and plenty of humus. A complete, slow release fertiliser in spring will get their root system off to a good start."

The Full Article

Famartin : It gets plenty of water here in North Carolina, it's been a very wet winter we have gotten tons of rain here and expecting more in the coming days?

I just need to know if the Miracle Gro Spikes will help? And when should I notice a difference?

How close to the tree did you put the spikes?

That many spikes next to such a tiny tree could burn the roots if placed too closely.

It would be better to use a liquid soluble fertilizer, in a weak solution, like miracle grow and just give the tree one feeding now and then again in a couple of weeks.

Other than that, too much fertilizer can have undesirable results.

I planted them under the drop line like the instructions said to do and not real close but far enough out to where it will get to the roots, thanks for the advice

Davidrt, I saw an enormous open-grown coastal redwood in the Napa Valley wine area on a bit of a hill beside a main tourist building in the 90s -- thought at first it was a giant, rather dingy-looking baldcypress (it was May & was shedding some brown needles). That was NOT in the moist, coastal-fog areas, it was a fair-distance to the east. I'd be pretty sure it was planted, but not 100% sure (it was huge)......

@Michael Boles While its good they stay moist (but not waterlogged) in Winter, I think Summer water is much more critical. While they don't need to be waterlogged, it should definitely never be allowed to dry out if you want it to grow rapidly.

Michael, I don't know enough about the spikes - however I think you've way too many. And fertilizers are not the only influence on growth. Also take care that the mulch in not too deep that it will smother the roots that like to be near the surface.

Definitely not native to Napa Valley. But for better or worse they are planted throughout the Central Valley. (often worse, because more often than not they don't look good) I don't even think the ones at Sonoma Hort 20 miles west of there are native, but they have done pretty because the nursery was built along a creek, and Sebastopol is almost in the marine zone. I think the looming trunk and foliage to the right is a redwood. The tree above the Gunneras at center might be, but I also remember a bald or pond cypress or two around this pond.

Wow. Neat picture, David. You could have given me a million guesses about where that photo was taken, and I would not have guessed Sonoma in any of them.

@Jim Horton thanks for your advice I will check the amount of mulch, how deep should the mulch be?

@famartin like I said the other day I don't have to water it much because we get plenty of rain, so I usually just water it when we aren't expecting rain for a long period of time

@Michael Boles Personally I keep track of rainfall at my house and if there hasn't been a lot, I'll water and keep track of how often I do that too. For the first year, if a week went by without an inch of rain, I soaked it deeply. I extended that to 10 days the second year, 14 the third, etc.

Michael, just an FYI but fertilizer spikes are pretty much a waste of time and money. They concentrate nutrients in a single location rather than dispersing them over the entire root system so the feeder roots can properly access them. Much of the nutrients are wasted (roots can't access) and there is a good possibility that nutrients are over-concentrated in the spike placement area and could cause damage. They were developed for the convenience of gardeners, not to address the plant's needs.

If you already have them. grind them up into a granular form and sprinkle around the drip line. And did you read the label for rate of application? For a tree that size, you would use ONE, not six!!

@Michael Boles once the outside temp is above freezing, no mulch. Or a mulch of pine needles. Again, holly-tone a better fertilizer than the miracle grow sticks. And LESS IS MORE. You’ll do more damage over-fertilizing than under-fertilizing. Many people above have said so. I, personally have never fertilized our Coastals. The big one has other conifers nearby who drop their needles that feed. Good luck. You’ve a treasure trove of info above to guide you. BTW is the miracle gro for evergreens? If so, the grinding them up and spreading them around (in a lesser quantity) sounds like a god idea.

@Jim Horton I don't have access to pine needles and yes the Miracle Gro Spikes are for the Evergreens, maybe you guys can tell me where to find pine needles, thanks again guys for all the advice I will keep y'all posted on the progress of there is any

Dean it is the most remarkable display garden of a nursery I've ever seen in my limited travel experience: I've never seen Heronswood (original or restored) or Hilliers, but it's got to be up there. Here is a thread that just touches on the variety of plants there.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5263994/sonoma-horticultural-nursery-and-garden-tour

and I just noticed one of my own is linked therein: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/3876249/as-requested-a-few-more-norcal-pictures

Alas the original developer of the plant collection sold it in 2017, I have no idea if it will continue the way it had...often such places go into slow decline when the original owner sells out (Heronswood) or dies (Rarefind in NJ).

@Michael Boles under Pine trees near by. But I think most of us agree, reduce the fertilizer sticks by half or MORE. Patience.

Yeah like I said...even the world's tallest growing tree doesn't grow fast...especially in the first 5 or so years. Trying to speed things along with fertilizer is a BAD idea.

My ninety foot Sentinel grows about 3 feet a year planted on large berm. I've seen them here (S.C.) grow faster when young. Plant on top a human head size rock and they'll grow even faster. (I've tried this and it works !).

Got a question I noticed that one side of the trunk barely has any branches on one side, is that normal? And should I prune off any dead branches or leave them?

Not exactly "normal" but not exactly "atypical" either. Depending on its prior circumstances it may have had a tendency to grow in certain directions and not others. If you are sure they are dead, prune them.

In California, their most prolific home, if a tree falls over, new trees grow from the fallen mother/father. let the tree inform you. Don’t try to force a growth. It will or won’t survive but meddling probably won’t help. Keep things as “natural” as can be is my opinion. In California the trees we’d their roots to each other to form a community. Similar to quaking Aspens. Read about their inter-relationships.

Here are more East Coast redwoods! The large one is in downtown Columbia crowded by a live oak, side-walk/street/ and drive, but is holding on well. Guessing the big one came from Pomaria Nursery (c. 1845 +).

Columbia, SC?

I must be missing something because none in the pictures are very big for this species. The ones at W&M are only from 1955 and their trunks are over a meter in diameter.

http://bigtree.cnre.vt.edu/detail.cfm?AutofieldforPrimaryKey=1198

Here is one I didn't know about. Looks like they LOVE the high summer rainfall, and deep sandy soils of southeastern Virginia! The best Cryptomeria I've ever seen on the east coast (probably, anywhere! I've never been to JP or CN) was somewhere in Norfolk but I doubt I could ever find it again.

http://bigtree.cnre.vt.edu/detail.cfm?AutofieldforPrimaryKey=660

Time for those folks to install a lightning arrester for that tree! Or make sure the church spire is well grounded so that it diverts the charge LOL.

Yes, Columbia S.C. I didn't post pic of the trees crown as It's a bit scrappy in it's crowded location., definitely not as nice/full as tree that tree davidrt posted. The others are young, yes.

Davidrt, I agree, very well-drained, but moist (alot of rain) is a key requirement for some trees, especially out of their native areas since those conditions limit root-rot, etc, that they might not have resistance to.