whats the shrub jammed in the corner near the steps ...

it really ruins the future conifer bed ... any chance it can go first??? .. the atlas might go there nicely ...

otherwise.. you already have a green weeper on the left .. and 2 together might not be pleasant to the design ...

ken

ps: shade the burlap in the meantime.. no need to cook the already stressed roots in sun ... a wet rag towel would probably work ...

I’d move it out into the yard. Just don’t cut the electricity to the light pole while digging the broad shallow hole it will need.

tj

Embothrium - yes I met with the landscape design person at the nursery to learn how to keep it trained. It's a lot of work but I'm willing. He said it's considered a dwarf because it usually doesn't reach more than 15 feet high.

And tsugajunkie I am well aware, my husband wired the light so I'm confident he knows where he put the line.

Ken - which one? The tallest shrubs on each side of the steps toward the back are Holly bushes. The entire bed is coniferous except for the Japanese Maple.

Your landscape person is working with some misinformation if he thinks it is only the limited height that makes it a dwarf. With conifers, it is the rate of growth that determines ultimate size categorizing. A 'dwarf' would be one that puts on 6 inches or less of growth per year.......once established, these guys can put on as much as 24" of growth per year, putting them firmly in the 'large' conifer category. The growth will just be focused laterally rather than vertically.

This from the ACS: "Even though plants can be slow to develop character, this is definitely not a dwarf conifer. Terminals can extend up to 2 feet (60 cm) on a yearly basis and, over time, will become a massive tree. It is extremely tolerant of xeric conditions and for best performance, must be sited in full sun."

Plan accordingly!!

trees... of which conifers are.. NEVER stop growing ...

so any claim that it has a limited height is simply wrong ...

ken

ps: resin suggested that at 385 feet a redwood stops growing .. because it cant overcome gravity in pumping water any higher.. go figure on that .. lol ...

Ken, because of the training and the natural growth habit, this tree will never get significantly taller than it is now. Upward growth = height is determined by apical dominance and in this case that apical dominance (ie. a leader) is directed laterally/horizontally rather than vertically.

Here is a mature specimen growing in an arboretum setting....as you can see, height is extremely limited!!

Even the OP's serpentine could reach these proportions eventually.

One planted in Geneva, Switzerland in about 1907 was 24 ft. tall with a trunk 4 ft. around and an average crown spread of 38 ft. by 1967.

The weeping spruce, Japanese maple and Blue Atlas cedar are all too close to the house for starters. There is not room for the three of them in that corner and that arrangement does not look good anyway. Add in the Gold Mop and Globe Blue Spruce and you have the "one of everything" look. Not good.

Put the cedar out by the lamp post. Place the JM angled off the corner of the house in the middle of the bed not in the top third. Replant the Weeping spruce a foot or so forward and two feet down slope.

If you feel the need to add something else in this bed do another Gold Mop or Globe Blue Spruce.

I would plant it in the center of the lawn and treat it like any other tree.

Hi everyone, I planted the Blue Atlas by the lamp post. I did move the maple forward and over to the right, it was just there temporarily to see how it would look against the house. Unfortunately dead center of the weeping spruce and the gold mop is a drainage pipe. We planted the maple in the exact spot where we had a previous Tamukeyama that was 20 years old. The main trunk split in a storm and we had to remove it.

I know the Atlas will grow in both height and width, it's still an immature tree. I plan to continue training it to keep the serpentine shape for a few years. I fully expect that I may have to take it out down the road if it gets out of control. Now at least it's not among other shrubs that could be disturbed by removing it.

Christopher - Our home is perfectly symmetrical in the front so varying the landscape too much feels odd to me. I wanted to keep the area right next to the steps on either side the same. The bed on the other side of the steps mirrors the one you see with the Holly, the blue globe, and the mop. So it's not really one of each, it's two, but I understand your point. On the other side of the house next to the mirrored bunch, I have a weeping snow fountain and a red rhododendron, so there is some variety.

I am nervous to move the weeping spruce now as it's been in for 2 weeks and it was showing signs of stress when we first planted. At least it has more room now that I moved the maple over. I figured it would weep toward the driveway with the way the growth is now so I didn't want to plant it too far forward in the bed.

Thanks for the help.

I see. The sideways picture. My neck can't do that.