Planting Norfolk Island Pine (tree) Outdoors

13 years ago

Hi Flordia gardeners! I'm asking on this forum not for myself but for my Grandfather. He lives in Englewood, FL in zipcode 34224. I was given a Norfolk Island Pine and it has grown to over 5 feet tall and is too large to keep up in Maryland. I'm hoping I could plant it as my Grandfathers house. Would it be hardy there? He is close to the Gulf and also near Lemon Bay. Let me know!

Featured Answer

junglegal

13 years ago

Plant it and stand back....Just know they shoot straight up and drop a lot of cones quickly.

Comments (15)

karate626
Original Author
13 years ago
Is the tree invasive? Do the cones set seed? Are you saying it is hardy?
Thanks!
TJ
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User
13 years ago
we have three in the yard, took quite a hit last winter, but are recovering. very brittle tree in storms. fast grower, tropical, but very nice shape. we are in zone 8-9, central florida. hope this helps.
stuartwanda
13 years ago
TJ, yes they will grow here. No, they aren't invasive but they can get over a 100 ft. tall. Just make sure he has the room.
scogebear
13 years ago
It will grow, but as everyone said, they get very large. They also can come down in hurricanes. One 100 foot one cracked at the base during Wilma near my house, crushing a car and telephone pole. They normally just loose their branches in high winds, and it takes them years to grow back and they look terrible. I wouldn't suggest it - there are many better choices.
natives_and_veggies
13 years ago
Don't plant it within 100 feet of anything you care about. It's not invasive, but they're extremely brittle. One across the street came down in a mild March thunderstorm - not a hurricane - a couple years ago, crushing my boyfriend's car. The storm snapped it off at 10 feet above the ground. The ten-foot stump finally came down in a thunderstorm a few months ago, taking out a neighbor's fence. (these were planted in the right-of-way and the whole neighborhood had to beg the city to take its twin out.)
They also tend to get kind of scraggly looking as they get taller. They don't keep that pretty conical shape down here. And because they get so tall, taking one out can require a tree guy with a cherry picker to top it several times in order to get rid of it without endangering nearby houses (had to do that in another house years ago, it's expensive.)
I'd advise against anyone down here planting them. I know Geico would.
karate626
Original Author
13 years ago
Man that stinks! I would never have thought they were so brittle knowing that they come from a small tropical island. I thought they came from windy places. Is there any way to prune the top so it stays more managable like around 20 or 30 ft?
User
13 years ago
notice how you never see them for sale, except at christmas??? some counties in florida won't let retailers sell them at all, very brittle in storms. my brother who did work right after h. andrew, has pictures of them sticking out of windows and buildings. just like missles when they break. the cold keeps them in check in this area, don't get very big. lots of better choices.
natives_and_veggies
13 years ago
There is one I see on my way to work that has been topped, probably to keep it from falling on the house. It survived the pruning, but it has a funny shape now. I think one of the reasons they're so problematic down here is they grow much faster than they do in their natural habitat. A lot more rain here than on Norfolk Island.
oukay
13 years ago
After Hurricane Charley, there were fronds/branches in my mother's yard that had come arrowing down from a neighbor's tree. They were buried 6-12" in the ground where they touched down.
ritaweeda
13 years ago
We had one many years ago (typical Christmas gift) and it was killed by a very cold winter. Everyone else around us who planted it also lost theirs. I guess it's a good thing since I didn't realize how big they can get and how unstable they are. Personally I wouldn't plant this tree.
puglvr1
13 years ago
Personally I wouldn't plant one...we had one when we bought our house in Bradenton several years ago...during a tropical storm half of it broke off and fell inches from my neighbors pool...it could have been very costly and dangerous! Funny thing was I asked my Home owners insurance if they would cover half the cost to remove it just a few weeks before that happened and they said NO!

I agree, there are much better choices out there to plant. I'm not a big fan of this tree, grows very fast and very tall and NOT storm/hurricane friendly...just my opinion.
fawnridge (Ricky)
13 years ago
When I was taking my landscape classes, David McLean called them "Florida Lightning Rods". Because they can grow to 150 feet tall, they then become the tallest thing in the landscape. 9 out of 10 that die, are hit by lightning.

Bottom line - plant something else.
havnfn
13 years ago
Does anyone know if this type of tree is used at SeaWorld's Aquatica? We've seen a tree there that we've been trying to find out what it is and this is the closest I've seen to it. We were wanting to plant some in a backyard or as pool decoration.

But, reading this it appears that would not be a good idea. If it is used at Aquatica, perhaps they remove them after a few years with newer plants to keep from having to deal with a tall tree that could cause problems?
Felix Kibet
3 years ago
how far can one plant this tree from your House?