Stereotypical characters of Cedar of Lebanon are rigid branches, eventually paddle- or tennis racket-like in structure, stiff leaves with cactus-like sharp tips and large cones with hairy scales. Up here Himalayan cedar (and to a lesser extent, Atlas cedar) are vastly more common, with people rather often wanting to call various specimens Cedar of Lebanon that really do not fit the bill. Scarecrow habit Himalayan cedar variants have also been much sold as weeping Cedar of Lebanon, by mistake.

Mostly planted trees around here, but some natives too. Species composition varies between public (parks, streets) planting and private (garden) planting. Abundant: Sycamore Maple, European Ash, European Beech, European Holly, European Rowan, Common Whitebeam, Swedish Whitebeam, Wild Cherry, European Yew, Leyland Cypress, Lawson's Cypress, assorted hawthorns, crabapples and flowering cherries. Frequent: Goat Willow, Weeping Willow, Hybrid Black Poplar, Silver Birch, Italian Alder, Sweet Chestnut, English Oak, Sessile Oak, Turkey Oak, Laburnum, Horse-chestnut, Norway Maple, Field Maple, Common Lime, Broad-leaved Lime, Sawara Cypress, Himalayan Cotoneaster. Less common: Scots Pine, Austrian Pine, Stone Pine, Norway Spruce, Atlas Cedar, Deodar Cedar, Western Redcedar, Monkey-puzzle, White Poplar, Grey Poplar, Himalayan Birch, European Hornbeam, Turkish Hazel, Rauli Beech, Holm Oak, Northern Red Oak, Saucer Magnolia, London Plane, Silver Maple, Japanese Maple, Eucalyptus, etc. Many others more rarely, just the odd individual here and there. Resin

Thanks bboy. While riding around Portland for 23 years I have gaped at huge Blue Atlas Cedars and longed for the day I could plant some in my own yard. They are spectacular, majestic, awe-inspiring. I won't live long enough to see these become huge but I have the good karma of leaving them for some fortunate person, beautifying my neck of the woods and watching them grow for whatever time I have left on the planet. Did buy a Cyprus Cedar a couple months ago, like having a bonsai tree in the yard, LOL. It has actually grown since planted, but one can tell it's a slow grower. "> The Cyprus Cedar is the little darker green guy on the left. Will post a picture of him soon, with his new growth :-)

hairmetal: I wouldn't rule out "decline or removal due to non-hardiness related factors" as the reason for so few large cedars in the DC area. For example I remember a big one on Trap Rd. or thereabouts in Vienna, VA. At some point in the mid to late 00s, the last time I drove through that part of Fairfax County, I noticed it had been cut down. It was along the road, by a house that was close to the road, and I suspect either the utility or the owner decided it was just dominating the lot and the power lines too much. As I've noted about hollies, large, dark trees for some reason scare some homeowners. Elsewhere there was a huge Cedar of the Atlas or Lebanon pursuasion...I could not be sure. It's the one I posted a picture of a while ago. It seems ot have some kind of foliar disease or decline. Maybe caused by soil compaction, herbicide damage or whatnot. I was aware of that tree and it was definitely not damaged in 1994, cause I did landscaping the following summer and I remember seeing it. But yes, the winters of the late 70s, mid 80s and 1994 could have weeded some more tender strains of deodara out.