The bad...

...and the ugly. I think I'm done with junipers and dwarf Balsam Firs.

With that second pic, do we even want to see "the ugly"?!

What do they die of? I thought your climate was cool enough for balsam firs, but probably not fraser firs. Maybe these dwarfs just need to be grafted onto whatever firs do grow well for you. Maybe something like Abies sachalinensis or A. veitchii would be a good one to try, as, let's face it, Asian plants are more rot-root resistant generally. Abies firma is obviously the most resistant but is only zn 6 hardy. But I don't know if it is actually root rot. If that plant were in my garden and looked like that, that is what I would assume, as I otherwise seem to have no Abies pathogens.

Those are all babies. Get back one that horse young man. :). Spread the top two out and cut out the dead stuff. Replant all three about a foot higher. And never water any of them. In 4 years they'll be rockin'.

I have not identified what is ailing the Balsam Fir clones. I've also got A. b. 'Nana' that looks about the same as 'Piccolo'. Pathology is not my strong suit, and I fully admit I tend to find something else to do in the garden rather than focus on cause and effect. I'm trying to be more diligent about this, but it's a struggle.

Other than balsamea clones, Abies actually perform quite well here, with Fraser being a surprisingly strong grower. We've got several that my spouse and stepson planted about ten years ago, which were stuck in the ground and left to fend for themselves. I don't have any Balsam seedlings here, but my neighbor dug some from his "up north" cabin a few years ago and they're doing well. I've also got Korean and White firs that seem very happy.

The two A. b. clones are in well drained, loamy soil. Drainage is excellent. 'Nana' was planted two years ago, while 'Piccolo' was planted last summer. They get about six hours of sun, with 'Piccolo' in heavy shade after about 3pm. I did put in a sprinkler system during late Fall of 2014, so maybe this is the culprit. At first I thought deer browse was the problem, but I don't think that's it.

Hhhmmm well my understanding is most PNW nurseries use balsam or fraser for root stocks of their standard fir selections, so if both of those grow OK for you than that cannot be the problem. A few might use A. nordmanniana. And of course some special runs of plants have been grafted onto Abies firma for us southerners or mid-Atlanticians. But those wouldn't be hardy for you. I have a Abies procera selection I paid A LOT of money for that is supposedly grafted into A. firma, but it's already not looking too happy and if it doesn't make it, I'm going to be extremely annoyed. Abies firma are happy as clams here and overall, have been by far my most successful conifers. (although Cunninghamia is giving them some competition)

Pete, I'm sorry if I've somehow confused matters, but the two upright conifers are J. virginiana 'Skyrocket' aka 'Pole Hider'. I can understand why you'd think this is a drainage issue, but if I've got drainage issues, than everyone must have drainage issues. I'm not saying moisture isn't the problem, but I don't think it's related to excessive retention of water in the soil.

Is it possible this is a reaction to chemicals/creosote from the pole carrying our electrical service?

As an FYI, I would have preferred something like Pinus Cembra 'Chalet' for this spot, but I was granted very little garden space to work with.

Is it possible this is a reaction to chemicals/creosote from the pole carrying our electrical service?

No.

As far as cold-hardiness of balsam firs, this is often considered a "weed tree"-not by me, but by lumbermen-in our state. As common as reed canary grass in the ditches and roadsides of northern WI. Maack's not there specifically-he's in far western WI I think-but this is an extremely easy tree in its normal full-sized version. Something didn't make the translation to mini status-what a surprise!

"Something didn't make the translation to mini status-what a surprise!"

Do I detect a hint of sarcasm? ;)

May want to find out if they weren't grafted onto Abies firma. I have a five year old Abies balsamea `Prostrata' that has no issues.

tj

"May want to find out if they weren't grafted onto Abies firma."

That would seem to be the logical first step. I'm not sure what either of these are grafted onto, but I just assumed it was balsamea. 'Piccolo' came from Iseli; not sure where 'Nana' was produced.

I think I'll move both of them to the section of my garden known as the nursing home. Yes, it's what you think.