Beech question for a conifer crowd
texjagman
11 years ago
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texjagman
11 years agoRelated Discussions
Tri Color Beech .... AGAIN!
Comments (20)Uummmm...I'll join in the fray here to say that if you look at where most of these are from, it's not surprising they aren't hardier than zn 5b. Most of western Europe is 7b (colder parts of Germany) to 8b (milder parts of SE England) and that's where most of them were bred or selected. (of course there are some outliers, zn 6 in some mountain areas and zn 9 along coasts...I'm talking big picture) Yes if you went into the Carpathians or Alps you could probably find provenances of European beech that are fully zn 5 hardy but that's not where they were getting the seeds for these cultivars in most cases. IIRC there are some new German cultivars in the past decade or so. Maybe they are a bit hardier, maybe not. (German nurserypersons might be reasonably expected to have more of an interest in the colder markets of eastern Europe and Russia than UK ones) As other people have said, not only can Roseomarginata grow in full sun in mild climates, in _really_ mild climates they can grow astonishingly fast. I saw a tree in Pallanza, Italy on the incredibly mild shores of Lake Maggiore (70+ inches of rain a year, spread year round with a slight summer peak, almost no droughts, zn 9, perfect volcanic soil, summers sunnier than NW Europe but not as sunny as the CONUS, etc. etc.) that was only planted in the 1950s and was close to 100 ft. tall with a 4' diameter trunk! Must have been growing almost 2 ft a year. OTOH I know one in the garden of a collector outside DC that, last I checked in the late 2000s, was still alive. I had first seen it in the early 1990s. It had only grown about 10 ft. though, at most, (From 6 ft. to 15 ft. I'd guess) so it was only growing about 8-9 inches a year. It was in semi-shade with morning sun...he considered it a real prized plant and gave it a good spot. He said in the mid 2000s it still loses most leaves in hot dry years, even with afternoon shade. This post was edited by davidrt28 on Sat, May 17, 14 at 20:52...See MoreHobbiton conifers of the week, May 8th
Comments (19)Thanks Will for your "This week tour". The Picea abies 'Medusa' is a true beauty and is my favorite, especialy now with the new foliage. During our U.S. trip in January I learned that this cultivar was found as a witches' broom on a Picea abies 'Acrocona' by Jim Boyko. The temporary name he gave to it was 'Acrocona Globe', later on he named it 'Medusa'. Also your Picea abies 'Catharine's Golden Heart' is glowing among it's other colourful friends! You're showing us some very nice colour combinations! Your garden do have a much differend look now then back in January when we visited you, it's full of surprises :0)...See MoreHobbiton conifers of the week, July 23rd
Comments (19)Thanks for the additional nice compliments, we all like flattery for our hard labors of love. Dave the naming of my garden wasn't something I was very comfortable with originally but it makes it easier then saying the gardens of that firefighter gardener guy. Hobbiton is a fantasy realm from the world-wide acclaimed masterpiece novels by J.R.R. Tolkien: Lord of the Rings(also wrote The Hobbit). It's one of the greatest pieces of literature I have ever read and my parents read it to me as a very young child. It's deep in my heart and my tribute to the books are naming my garden after the green, happy, gardening-heavy and friendly neighborhood of most of the hobbits in the books "Hobbiton". Additionally with the focus on miniature plants, some even carrying names like 'Hobbit', 'Pixie Dust', 'Troll', 'Elf', 'Goblin' and plenty of Dwarves, it seemed appropriate. As to 'Horstmann', I would say that we have the same cultivar but yours was trained, staked and pruned early in life, whereas mine is a side-grafted specimen that hasn't figured out a leader yet. I haven't decided whether I will prune it or not - and in either case, I think it will spread eventually. Cedrus libani var. atlantica are generally wide-growing plants, narrow being the very rare exception. Your specimen is beautifully narrow now but may require some pruning to keep it tight over the years. Out to water I go! -Will...See MoreConifer choice
Comments (7)I knew the 'Hetz Wintergreen' width question would come up but I figure with a growth rate of 3 feet per year at the minimum here in Illinois - you'll have a tree approximately 10 feet wide in 20 years. So kind of a perfect choice really. Juniperus viginiana 'Elegantissima' I've seen only on video and it's a very nice tree with upswept weeping branches and with a fast growth rate. It's also dense. Then sure, I thought with the deciduous suggestions, they wouldn't make your list, but I offered them up anyway on simple fact that they'd make for a nice specimen. If you like the Green Giant - go for it. It's very dark green and really a super conifer in my opinion. Everyone likes them. As to Blights, caterpillars, and whatever else your list of pests is, I don't have an answer for you. Maybe alone because I don't know where you live, but Juniperus viginiana in general can be planted I believe just about anywhere in the US that's zone 9 and below. So it should do well just about anywhere. Best I can say. Maybe a Chamaecyparis nootkatensis 'Pendula' will fit your needs, but unfortunately it does grow slower than most. Good luck & take care! Dax I guess I can post some photos to help: Chamaecyparis nootkatensis 'Pendula' (Hidden Lake Gardens) Pinus strobus 'Golden Candles' (Hidden Lake Gardens) Pinus koraiensis 'Silveray' (Hidden Lake Gardens) Picea pungens 'Thompson' Picea omorika 'Pendula' (forms vary - Hidden Lake Gardens) Picea pungens 'Iseli Foxtail' (Bickelhaupt Arboretum) Pinus koraiensis 'Silveray' (Bickelhaupt Arboretum) Thuja occidentalis 'Hetz Wintergreen' (Bickelhaupt Arb.) Foliage 'Hetz Wintergreen' (Fall 2003 - Bickelhaupt) Yah - I'd probably skip 'Hetz Wintergreen' - It's too skinny. Larix kaempferi 'Diana' - This is a good one! Deciduous as you see: I don't know - there'a a few for you to look at. Also you can check out my photo albums here: Photo's Webpage Dax...See Moreabciximab
11 years agoSara Malone Zone 9b
11 years agoj0nd03
11 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years agoj0nd03
11 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years agoSara Malone Zone 9b
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11 years agoSara Malone Zone 9b
11 years agodavidrt28 (zone 7)
11 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years agotexjagman
11 years agoSara Malone Zone 9b
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10 years ago
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Sara Malone Zone 9b