That is the natural growing pattern of these conifers to curl and twist. If left along to grow as they please they can become quite interesting. I have one growing doing the same thing.

You say the tree is leaning and the top is curling over. To me this is two separate issues. I can't imagine why a 5 foot tree would lean if planted properly. Especially this conifer as all branches hang down quite uniformaly and do not cause an out of balance load. Make sure the soil around the root ball is compacted enough to keep the tree stable. Don't compact to the point where it is concrete hard. At any rate the tree needs to be staked back to the vertical position. Leave stake on for at least a year to give new root growth a chance to anchor the tree naturally.

As for the top curl leave it alone. If you think the snow loads are excessive just go out and give the limbs a shake to knock off.

You have a beautiful conifer. It will in time take care of itself and be a great asset to your property.

Dave

Thanks, Dave. The poor little thing is curled like a "C" with the tip of the tree pointing down to the ground. The trunk has a lean of 30 degrees or so. This confirms my hunch that I need to stake it which I will do as soon as the ground thaws. I think you are right that it has to do with the soil not being compact enough. This was a new bed with a big load of triple mix on top and likely the soil has settled since I put the tree in. Fran

If the bottom is pointed straight up this wouldn't be it but otherwise beware of rootbound rootstock on grafted conifers. At outlets here the majority of small interesting grafted conifers (and much other stock) has seriously defective roots visible on the surface or easily detected by moving the top around.

presuming.. it is properly planted.. and NOT tipping its root mass out of the hole ... and endangering its own life .....

and being the type A conformist in too many other aspects of my life ...

i am of the conifer group known as ... THE WEIRDER THE BETTER group ....

i can not tell you how many garden visits i have been on.. with many well trained highly specialized peeps .... and the star of the garden is NOT the perfect Xmas tree specimen grow to perfection ... but the one that should be perfect.. but seems to be dancing to a tune the rest of the world really doesn't hear.. or understand .... they will spend 20 minutes standing in front of it.. enjoying it.. or trying to figure out what is going on.. while walking right past the perfect one ... go figure..

frankly .... if you were near me.. i would come take it off your hands.. and make it the star of my garden ...

please .... try to enjoy your garden for what it is.. or how it evolves... once you start forcing your preconcieved notions of what a plant should be ... you can drive yourself insane .... its a zen thing ...

now .... being from MI .. i think of ON as Ontario, Canada ... but i have been seeing a lot of ON's here in the forum .... where are you .. and what do you mean by ON ...

good luck

ken

Thanks, bboy, I went out to look - dug a hole in the snow around the base of the tree, and - it's okay! The trunk is pointing straight up! The lean starts part-way up the trunk when it starts to curve.

Hi Ken,
I agree with you... I too am a fan of the non-conformist! I just needed to make sure that my little tree is doing okay.
I'm new to the world of conifers and have become quite fascinated with them. (could say obsessed?) I've started adding unusual and interesting conifers to my garden over the past year and enjoy their unique personalities so much.
Yes, I'm from Ontario. It's not a bad place to garden, but it's hard to find rare and unusual plants (especially dwarf conifers)

Hi Fran - just what I like to here, someone who has become obsessed! with dwarf conifers.

Rich's Foxwillow Pines: A nice specimen.

Picea omorika 'Pendula Bruns'
{{gwi:653530}}

Dax

Hey Dax, That Bruns is choice.

Coralbelle, Now that I know the trunk is straight coming out of the ground that simplifies your issues with this conifer.

If it were mine I would still stake to vertical to get some height as it is fairly young and hasn't taken a set. With this conifer height is more desirable then a leaner which could eventually some day lean to the ground and take the roots with it especially if you encounter heavy snow & ice loads. There are plenty of other offerings out there to give you that look but this conifer is not one I would choose. Then again the choice is yours. You have plenty of feedback to make your choice.

Dave

Thanks to Dax for the inspiring photo - I can only dream that my little tree will someday soar like that.
Dave, I'm confused about your comment. When you said "There are plenty of other offerings out there to give you that look..." what look are you referring to? Do you mean the leaned over to the ground look, or the upright weeper?
I ask because I'm still learning about conifers (which is why I ended up on this forum) and am looking for information about different plants. I'm interested in recommendations from other keen plantspeople who have lived with and nurtured the gorgeous specimens I see in the books. Only experience will tell whether a plant really lives up to the glowing descriptions in the plant catalogues.
I'm at a fortunate stage of life - kids just finishing high school. So, I have the time, energy & motivation to make my garden really special. If figure if I plant trees now, they will be my joy in the golden years. My preference would be to invest in conifers! So, if you have any favourites, please feel free to describe them to me in detail! I would love to hear.

Sorry I didn't mean to confuse you.
I just meant there are other pendulous forms out there that lean and are better suited to grow horizontally. Picea o. 'Pendula Bruns' is not one of them.

Here is one of my favorites that grows on the horizontal.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Picea pungens 'The Blues'

now... being that i am of the weirder the better club .... and working off what dave is trying to say ....

sometimes.. it is better to straighten a plant ...

in this case... the entire beauty of this one.. involes its ... for lack of a better term .... arrow shape .... straight as an arrow.. with all its branches swept down as if speeding through the air .... perhaps it does need to be straightened ...

but my original point was ... do it for based on your vision of your plant... do not base it solely on what anyone else thinks ....

frankly .. without a picture of your specific plant... it is really hard to guide you one way or the other ....

ken

Hey Coralbelle,

If you are having trouble finding dwarf conifers. Check out my place whistling gardens.ca. I have over 1 300 different species, varieties and hybrids of conifers. I was in the same boat as you many moons ago. It all started with 1 goofy tree.....

Thanks, affliction_acs, I did check out your website and I'm pleased to note that you have most of my dream plants AND you're not too far away! So, I will be paying you a visit in the spring. I'd love to know how you got started in the plant business.....

Hi Coralbelle,

Sorry for the late reply. Had a couple busy days. I was a propagator for almost 18 years at another nursery. To make a long story short-- got tired of being a production monkey (hundreds of thousands annually) plus we didn't grow any conifers there. I always had a passion for evergreens, bought a few, experimented with propagation with pretty good success and than just branched from there. But I keep the numbers below 30 000 plants a year. I try to add a couple hundred varieties and/or species to the collection every year. Probably a bit extreme but I don't care.

Could be addicted to worse things in life...

Hope to see you this summer, we'll do a tour.
Gotta run it's Valentines Day...

Darren

Very interesting place Darren. I took a little time reading links and look very forward to your photo gallery.

56 acres and a 2 acre garden, super!

Post some photos anytime! So is "Paris" in Canada? I sort of get that feel.

Thanks again, looks like Canada has a passionate duo among you and your business partner.

Take care,

Dax

Darren - your website looks great! It has to be one of the most comprehensive and descriptive conifer sales sites on the web. What is involved with shipping stuff to the US? (Asks the woman whose credit card is hidden in a drawer because DH said no more ordering conifers or JMs in 2009.)

Elizabeth

Ooops, I meant "2008". I'm not banned for 2009, yet.

Elizabeth

Hi Elizabeth,

I haven't ever had a problem bringing or shipping plants into the U.S. At the nursery I used to work at we shipped plants all over the world. As long as the paper work is correct everything would be fine. It costs about 20.00 to get a phytosanitary certificate. I would need to know your state and what it is you are interested in so I can talk to C.F.I.A (Canadian Food Inspection Agency)to see if there are restrictions.

Please email me at info@whistlinggardens.ca. is you have any other questions and I would be happy to answer them.

Glad to read that you have the same problem as many of us do! I don't even show my wife what I buy anymore, although in the last year or so she seems to have come to terms with my "hobby", if I only show her half of what I buy. :-)

Darren