“That’s one big tuna!”

I am frequently reminded by my friends, living in much more harsh climates than we enjoy in the Pacific Northwest, that they have a much more limited pallet of dwarf conifers to choose from for their gardens. Those folks must endure hotter and more humid summers and far more colder winters with sub-freezing temperatures, that I can only imagine. Here in my corner of the world, I am able to grow almost any but the most tropical conifers. When a friend from Plentywood, MT asked me for advice for their new landscape, I must admit it was a real challenge to find an assortment of plants that would create a pleasing garden, with year-round interest, in their very harsh climate.

This young specimen of ‘Big Tuna’ is six to eight years old and stands nearly 36 inches tall.

One of the most hardy conifer “families” that I know of are the mugo pines. These tough plants are native to the high elevation mountains of Europe and have endured cold temperatures and freezing winds for thousands of years. There are many wonderful dwarf selections of these extremely hardy pines available to local gardeners through independent garden centers.

Many of the quality cultivars of mugo pine, which are commonly available, grow as low, mounding plants with dark green foliage. There are some whose color changes to shades of gold through the winter months, and they all have different growth rates from the tiniest miniatures to larger, more open growers. One in particular stands out from the crowd due to its upright, oval shape.

I remember hearing Jean Iseli and Don Howse talking about the day they were walking through a field of Pinus mugo seedlings. This field was probably 10-12 years old and there were thousands in a wild assortment of shapes and sizes of these young conifers. The two men were looking for special characteristics – extraordinary form, shape, growth rate, needle size, color — anything that they believed would make the plant worthy of reproducing and bringing into production at the nursery. As they were walking along, Jean came across one small tree and exclaimed, “That’s one big tuna!” They tagged the plant and continued on their way. That following winter the plant began to be propagated and was given the name, Pinus mugo ‘Big Tuna’. Personally, at the time, I was very skeptical about the name, but the plant is extraordinary! It is definitely one of my favorite mugos, and if I had a top-ten list of conifers, it might even be on that list.

This brilliant old specimen is the mother of all ‘Big Tuna’s. Standing nearly 15 feet tall and close to 40 years old, this ‘Big Tuna’ is showing the added value of seasonal color. Sprinkled in among the foliage are pinkish-orange pollen cones. Later, dark burgundy seed cones will become visible to the discerning eye.

Pinus mugo ‘Big Tuna’ is a dwarf, but it might be considered to be within the intermediate growth rate as designed by the American Conifer Society. When young, it shows great vigor and will advance with 6-8 inches of new growth per year. As the tree matures, that rate seems to moderate and the tree will form a large oval shape, somewhat taller than wide. The original mother of all ‘Big Tuna’s was planted in the Iseli Nursery main office landscape back in the mid-1980s and is a beautiful specimen today. I estimate that the tree is close to 15 feet tall and nearly 12 feet wide at its broadest point, about midway up the tree. Discovered in a group of seedlings planted in (or prior to) 1976, this excellent specimen is nearly forty years old!

‘Big Tuna’ is a great specimen, not only for those folks living in our colder climates, but also for those of us gardening in more temperate areas of the world. I can image a row of ‘Big Tuna’s making a formidable hedge in time. Its uniform shape and compact habit would make it useful in a formal landscape in place of plants that may require annual shearing to maintain their tidy form.

Versatile, compact, unique shape, reliable and extremely cold hardy. I suggest that you go out and catch a ‘Big Tuna’ for your garden!

Ed-
Conifer Lover

Miniscapes and the hot date

My wife and I had a hot date last night. Before you allow you mind to wander, let me clarify. We are currently in the midst of one of our rare, warm and sunny springs. Back in the 1980s, I remember several years in a row when we enjoyed temperatures during the month of May that exceeded 80 degrees for weeks at a time. That weather was, of course, far from what may be considered normal in my corner of the Pacific Northwest.

A miniscape is simply a miniature landscape in a container. In this case, including the miniature chair and garden tools adds to the fun and whimsy of the little garden. Some miniscapes might include a great deal of detail and be themed for fairies, or sports teams – anything you might imagine could become the theme of your own miniscape. (Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Nana Gracilis’, Taxus cuspidata ‘Nana Aurescens’, Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Cumulus’ and Buxus sempervirons ‘Variegata’.)

So, yesterday, my wife and I went on one of our garden center dates, and it was HOT! Sunny warm weather, gorgeous wife by my side, and ultimately, a cart full of all kinds of plants for the garden. We Picked up a couple of tomato plants since we just don’t need as many as we would end up with if we planted a pack of seeds. I wanted two or three eggplants (they had some really cool heirloom varieties in stock) by my wife assured me that we would only need one. We also came to agreement on a flat of Marigolds, plus we found an assortment of herbs that we wanted to had to our herb garden.

Along with the conifers (Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Verdonii’, Abies koreana ‘Cis’, Juniperus horizontalis ‘Mother Lode’) there are a couple Sempervivums and a tiny, slow-growing holly named, Ilex crenata ‘Dwarf Pagoda’

I managed to sneak a few cute little conifers into the cart along with some new miniature  Sedums and Sempervivums so that I could plant a couple of new containers that we had picked up from our favorite pot lady back when she had great sale prices a month or two ago. My wife gave me quite a look at the checkout stand when the girl scanned the new conifers, but when I explained my plan to fill the new containers, her gaze quickly morphed from a cold stare to something a bit more warm and inviting.

By the time we arrived back home, I had explained my plans for the new miniscapes that I would be creating and it seems that things did heat up just a degree or two with a squeeze here and a pat there — I decided that the potting up of those two ceramic pots would certainly hold off until today.

Miniscapes are perfect additions to the deck or patio. While making a gentle transition from patio to garden, they also bring the feel of the garden into the smaller and more intimate space of the garden room. (Picea glauca ‘Jean’s Dilly’, Picea abies ‘Pusch’, Juniperus communis ‘Effusa’ and Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Golden Mop’.)

One of the new miniscapes that I planted up today will end up as a housewarming gift for a couple of very nice, young friends that have recently purchased their first home. I am hoping to get them started off right with the year-round color, low-maintenance and tremendous joy of gardening with dwarf and miniature conifers. Once they have success with their new potted miniscape, I think I’ll be able to persuade them to branch out from more common or traditional landscape plans, and create a beautiful garden space built around the incredible pallet of color, texture and form of conifers!

My wife and I will also enjoy a new miniscape of dwarf and miniature conifers, and other cool little plants to add year-round color and interest to our patio. With the weather turning nice earlier than it has in many years, we expect to be spending a lot more time in the outdoor room of our patio, so it is always nice to have a collection of potted plants and miniature gardens to beautify that space.

I hope that springtime will arrive in your garden soon!

Ed-
Conifer Lover

A beautifully unusual spring

With over 230 posts published on this blog, I need to review them once in a while so that I may make an effort to not talk about the same plant or general topic too frequently. One topic that has come up many times over the years is the long, cold and wet winter and spring seasons we normally have in this part of the Pacific Northwest.

Beautiful little cones seem to pop up randomly on the spreading, Abies koreana ‘Blauer Pfiff’.

Fresh new foliage of Acer japonicum ‘Aconitifolium’ emerges with a hint of copper/bronze which fades to light green. Tiny flower cluster dangle below new leaves and slow transform into hairy, winged seeds.

Ever since the last week of March, we have had a very unusual spring. Although we have had plenty of rain, it hasn’t been the constant cold, gray downpour with rare and occasional sun-breaks. This spring we have enjoyed several warm and sunny days along with some cool and dry days which only included a brief shower or two. One of those days took me by surprise when the brief shower turned into a downpour of hail, but our hail is usually only about the size of a BB pellet, so it was just an annoyance and not a danger.

Incredible deep, rich, purple cones highlight the soft blue foliage of Picea englemanii ‘Fritsche’ in early spring. Soon, the fresh, bright blue foliage will emerge on this majestic, vigorous weeping tree.

Thanks to this great spring weather, I have been able to spend a tremendous amount of time in my garden. Here we are, in the later part of April, and I have most of my garden clean-up chores completed. I’ve planted several new dwarf conifers (some of which were mentioned a few posts back), I’ve prepared the raised beds of my dedicated veggie and herb garden, weeding is under control and perhaps what I am most excited about — the garden is coming alive with all the wonderful signs of spring!

My Japanese maples have exploded into full spring color; most of my cultivars within the Picea glauca family have a healthy start to their new push of foliage; cultivars of Cedrus deodara are pushing their bright new foliage tips; all of my pines are beginning to extend their new candle growth; and tiny colorful cones are beginning to emerge in this new season of the reproduction process. Even the first of my newly grafted plants is beginning to break bud!

After several years in a row of long, cold, wet, gray springs — which delayed plant growth by an additional week or two every consecutive year — it is very nice to enjoy a real spring-time season. But, keeping a sense of reality, this is the Pacific Northwest, so even though our spring is delightful, our area seems to always balance out, and I expect we may have a cooler, wetter summer — but who really knows — this is the weather I’m talking about!

I hope that wherever you are, springtime is near!

Ed-
Conifer Lover

Please enjoy these additional photos by R.C.Smith, provided by my friends at Iseli Nursery!

Four more dwarfs

Last time I began a story about my good friend and his desire to transform his dog-worn backyard into a beautiful garden. Of course, I’ve been extolling the wonderful attributes of dwarf and miniature conifers and my friend is convinced that he and his wife would love a low maintenance garden filled with the year-round color and interest that conifers will provide. I began this topic by discussing some of the plants which will become the larger specimens in this first section of the new garden. Those plants put on more annual growth so they grow to a larger size more quickly over the span of years than the more dwarf and miniature plants that are on today’s list.

As if magically sprinkled with pixie dust, this miniature form of the Dwarf Alberta spruce is a delight in the garden.

One of my favorite conifers, whether planted in the ground, in a container as a single specimen, or with a combination of other plants is a delightful dwarf with multi-season appeal. Picea glauca ’Pixie Dust,’ is very similar in shape to its granddaddy, the Dwarf Alberta spruce, but is much slower growing. With just a couple of inches of new growth per year, it will take its time reaching three feet tall and a couple of feet wide by its twentieth birthday. One of the fun features of ‘Pixie Dust’ is that its new growth doesn’t come in one big push in the spring. Just about the time that first spring push begins to harden off, a second push begins to emerge—not as vigorous as the first, but more slowly, over a period of several weeks, different buds will swell and pop with emerging new buttery-yellow foliage. These magical sparkles of color, dusting the plant through summer, are the inspiration behind the name of this adorable little tree.

The tiny ‘Thumbelina’ miniature Norway spruce is nestled in comfortably with companion flowers in the Jean Iseli Memorial Garden.

Another delightful fairy-tale spruce for this garden is the miniature, Picea abies ‘Thumbelina’, also growing just a couple of inches per year, this low-growing, globe-shaped mound is covered with tiny, dark green needles. The oldest specimen that I have seen of this cutie is a little over two feet wide and perhaps 18 inches tall—it must be at least 25 years old. Never needing pruning to keep it small and shapely, ‘Thumbelina’ is also ideal for container gardens—and with a name like that, who wouldn’t want to plant it in their very own Fairy Garden?

Very tight and compact growing, ‘Tenzan’ is a true miniature conifer that is perfect for containers, rock gardens and might make the perfect home for your own garden fairies and gnomes.

Possibly the slowest growing miniature conifer on the list is Cryptomeria japonica ‘Tenzan’. With just about an inch of new growth per year, this is one small, tight little mound of succulent, light-green needles. The needles look sharp, but are actually soft to the touch, though because ‘Tenzan’  is so dense, it has a very coarse texture and is one of those plants that I can’t help but want to touch when I am near it. This miniature conifer is ideal for combining with other plants in a container since it will take many years to outgrow its space. In fact, the three conifers mentioned so far would be perfect in a nice sized patio bowl combined with some alpine Sedums or Sempervivums—but that’s a topic for another post!

As cute as a seven month old kitten, ‘Golden Sprite’ on a stick is a fun addition to the garden either planted in the ground or featured in a prized container on the patio.

The fourth conifer in this design truly is fun! My wife and I attended a couple weddings recently, and it seems one of the latest things to have at the reception are cake-pops. These little balls of frosted cake are on a stick like a lollipop. Besides being delicious, they’re just darn cute. So is Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Golden Sprite’ grafted onto a small 12″ standard! This miniature, globe-shaped, golden-yellow Hinoki cypress is already a favorite for container or garden, but put it on a stick, and it is just about as cute as a seven-week-old kitten. Adding a pop of color and interest to this garden space, ‘Golden Sprite’ will grow into a perfect little ball of color which may seem to float above companion flowers or ground covers.

So, Golden Wilma and the seven dwarfs will be the foundation to this new garden space. Once we prepare the ground and properly plant these eight new conifers, we’ll discuss what companion plants will work well in the design—that means a fun trip to the garden center with my friends, which is like a trip to Santa’s workshop – and it won’t cost me a dime!

Ed-
Conifer Lover

Golden Wilma and the seven dwarfs

I am very excited that one of my friends has just recently decided it is time to overhaul his backyard. He is ready to transform it from an ugly duckling of abused sod, to a beautiful swan of a garden, featuring the year-round color and low maintenance of dwarf conifers!

Cupressus macrocarpa ‘Wilma’ makes a brightly colored focal point in the garden.

“Ed, I’ve been thinking, since we just have the one dog now, and he doesn’t dig and tear up the backyard like the other two, I’d like to start planting the back into a nice garden like you’ve been suggesting.”

“Great! I’ll bring my tiller over as soon as the soil dries a little!”

Now, being the Pacific Northwest, that might not happen until the month of June, but in the meantime, I’ll continue to generate interest and enthusiasm in my friend by drawing a simple design, listing the plants I recommend, and point him to pictures of specimens on the internet!

In one corner, I have a nice combination of plants in mind that will utilize a dandy little ensemble of dwarf and colorful conifers that will provide nice contrasts in shape, texture, size and color. We will be starting with fairly small plants – probably nothing larger than a #3 container – so my friend will enjoy watching this space grow and mature for the rest of his life.

For the main specimen, I will use a Cupressus macrocarpa ‘Wilma’. It will be the tallest plant in the grouping and will grow to about 12-15 feet tall by 4-6 feet wide over the next 15 to 20 years. It is a bright lemon-yellow color which takes on a more golden hue during the winter - definitely a focal point in the garden.

Pinus mugo ‘Big Tuna’ will mature into a full-figured specimen in the garden with a compact habit and great rich green color.

Pinus mugo ‘Big Tuna’ will fill in nicely as a second plant which will add some height to this space. Not growing quite as quickly as ‘Wilma’, ‘Big Tuna’ will also be more broad as it matures into a small tree of about 6-7 feet tall by 4-5 feet wide in the same 15 to 20 year time span. It’s dark green needles and clumping, mounding form will be a nice contrast to ‘Wilma’s small, fine-textured foliage.

Growing into a broad, mounding form, ‘Spiraliter Falcata’ will add a very unique texture to the garden.

Next on my list is a really cool little conifer with yellowish-green, needles which twist and curve completely around their wavy branches creating small cords of foliage appearing to wriggle their way about the plant. Like my first two selections, Cryptomeria japoncia ’Spiraliter Falcata’ is one of the larger growing plants in this grouping, though it does respond very well to annual pruning if one is so inclined to create a more densely growing plant and slow its overall march toward its ultimate height. Left to grow naturally, we might expect ‘Spiraliter Falcata’ to grow into a broadly upright specimen of 6-8 feet tall by 6 or 7 feet wide over the next 15 to 20 years.

Upon closer inspection, one discovers the fascinating foliage characteristic which lends ‘Spiraliter Falcata’ its unique overall texture. Small, thick, curving needles wrap themselves around the small curving twigs giving a cord-like appearance to the foliage.

Cedrus libani subs. brevifolia ‘Kenwith’, a dwarf Cedar of Lebanon, will add another element of both color and texture to this space. ‘Kenwith’ is a very slow grower with very small, sharply pointed, light green needles. Growing just a couple of inches per year, this cool little conifer will grow into a small, broadly pyramidal tree of just 2-3 feet tall in 15 years and be a little taller than it is wide. Not a densely growing dwarf, It has open, curved branches which suggest a windswept tree and it may be fun to prune this one to enhance this natural tendency.

Cedrus libani subs. ‘Kenwith’ reminds me of something one might discover under the sea with its tiny needles covering small, curved branches appear as though they are under the influence of gentle undersea currents.

Next time I will describe the smaller dwarf and miniature forms which will be the tiny specimens in this corner design. Of course, we will not be limited to the eight plants in these two posts. There will be room for other ground covers and flowering plants for my friends to plant and enjoy. Be sure to check back next time for the four final conifers on this list!

Ed-
Conifer Lover

A hint of spring

Last weekend we had a beautiful dry day that was not otherwise filled with commitments so that we could spend it in the garden! I had a fair amount of weeding to complete before the next wave of rain storms would prevent me from having the motivation required to tackle the task. I grabbed my hoe, plugged a gardening playlist into my ears, and worked briskly enough to generate the internal warmth necessary to overcome the shortcomings of the late winter sun. Before too long I had worked my way through at least half of my garden beds and decided that my heart rate had been accelerated long enough to satisfy my primary care physician, so I cleaned up and took my wife out on a garden center date.

One of the great things about being married for most of our lives, we have come to the point that pretty much any outing that we both enjoy can be considered a date. We still sit close on the old pickup bench seat, we still hold hands as we walk through the parking lot, and we still love to spend time in the local independent garden centers together.

Picea abies ‘Hildburghausen’ is a rich green, slow growing conifer with a unique texture and tidy habit.

Being early in the season, I was not sure what I might expect to find as far as conifers go, but I was confident that my wife would find a few pansies, and other early season flowers to dress up her flower-box along our front walk. Much to my surprise, my favorite garden center had already received a new delivery of dwarf conifers. Since this was my first “official” visit to the garden center this year, I had plenty of funds in my new conifer acquisition budget, which was a good thing since I did find a few things that I couldn’t allow to remain at the garden center.

My first find was quite a surprise since I had been admiring this cultivar for a number of years, but until now I hadn’t seen it locally available. Picea abies ‘Hildburghausen’ is a fantastic dwarf Norway spruce with a compact, globe-shaped habit when young. Eventually it begins to form a central leader and develops into a conical shape. I love the very small, dark green foliage, the big, fat buds and its branching pattern gives a unique texture to the overall appearance.

Picea abies ‘Barryi’ is a very slow growing dwarf conifer with an elegant habit and a lot of character.

My next find was, Picea abies ‘Barryi’, which is a very slow-growing, cone-shaped dwarf with short, dark green needles. When young, it has a somewhat irregular looking coarse texture, but it ages into an elegant pyramid. I’ve had ‘Barryi’ on my list for a quite a long time, but when I saw it playing the cello on the cover of the Iseli Nursery catalog a few years ago, I knew I had to find one for my garden!

Finally, I found a very cool dwarf conifer called Picea omorika ‘Minima’. This cultivar is another that I have wanted ever since I saw it planted in the Jean Iseli Memorial Garden. Slower growing with smaller, thinner needles than Picea omorika ‘Nana’, a tree I’ve mentioned in the past, it has a similar color and texture but in a much more compact form. I have only seen this plant growing in the shape of a perfect sphere, but I suspect that it may eventually begin to form a leader and become a very broad pyramid. The oldest specimen that I have seen is close to 20 years old and it retains its globe shape. I love the two toned needles giving the plant a silvery-bluish-green color and it will look great planted near my bright yellow Juniperus horizontalis ‘Motherlode’.

Picea omorika ‘Minima’ is an excellent globe-shaped dwarf conifer that packs a lot of colorful foliage in a small space.

May spring arrive with its fresh warmth to your location soon. In the meantime, our cold rains have returned (with a promise of sunshine in the future forecast).

Ed-
Conifer Lover

Rainbows and rants

We  have been experiencing a rather typical Pacific Northwest February with plenty of chilly temperatures, rain showers, sun breaks and the occasional rainbow sighting. The other day, after completing several chores around the house, my wife and I decided to allow someone else to fix us dinner and treated ourselves to an early dinner out. Moments after we were seated near an east-facing window, it started raining. As it turned out, this was one of those heavy downpours that last only a few minutes and are followed by a sun break. In fact, while we gazed out our window, it seemed as though the rain has almost completely stopped while looking out a window on the other side of the building, we could see the rain was still pouring as it was highlighted by the bright sun.

The winter conifer garden is full of color, texture, form and interest.

My wife has a special gift of being able to sense when a rainbow is coming and within a moment or two, she announced, that we were in a perfect spot to see the rainbow. I looked out the window across the nearly barren landscape of the restaurant and looked back and forth for her anticipated rainbow. Sure enough, within a couple of minutes, one began to materialize right before our eyes. It slowly grew in intensity until we could see the entire thing, from end to end. The colors became brighter and brighter and then a second rainbow appeared in an outer ring not far from the original.

In a few more minutes, the magical color had dissipated, the rain began to fall again and we were left with a view of the bleak landscaping darkened by the now gray, cloud filled sky.

“When are people going to figure out that even commercial landscapes could be places of year-round color and interest if they would use dwarf conifers?” I asked my wife, not expecting an answer.

The low winter sun, diffused by many clouds, provides a well-lighted vista of the Jean Iseli Memorial Garden.

It really does not matter whether the sun is shining or not, a barren winter landscape, splattered about with few Barberry plants, some Rhododendrons and a flowering cherry or two just does not make an attractive winter scene. Since winter lasts from November through March around here, nearly half of the year many landscapes are bleak and barren. How simple it would be to design a commercial landscape with colorful, low-maintenance dwarf conifers! There may be more of an initial investment for the property owner, but in the long run, the cost of maintaining dwarf conifers in any landscape should be dramatically lower.

The incredible color and interest of the conifer garden is highlighted during a winter sun break.

Most commercial properties are not designed for outdoor lawn activities, so why pay to plant, fertilize, irrigate and mow a huge, lush green lawn that no one uses? Dwarf, intermediate and even large conifers would be a perfect replacement for large expanses of lawn grass in commercial landscapes. Reducing lawn areas to complement the visuals in many designs may be more effective, aesthetically and monetarily.

Once established, conifers require very little care. One would need to inspect for insect infestations and treat accordingly. Complementing any garden design with a mix of plants can encourage a proper balance of predator insects which can keep the unwanted critters under control. With the proper plant selections, there should be very little pruning necessary aside from trimming out the occasional dead branch from the abuses plants in public spaces often endure.

Low maintenance, drought resistant, colorful, hardy conifers, for beautiful gardens all year-long, I say!

Who’s with me?

Ed-
Conifer Lover