Millions of years of history

I have a friend who loves to tinker – I think of him as a scientist and inventor. Last week he told me that he was working on a time machine.

“Seriously?” I asked.

“Yup.”

“So how does this thing work?” I asked looking at a small, odd-looking jumble of circuit boards, wires and – well, I’m not sure what.

“Don’t know yet.” he responded, his mind deep into some kind of mathematical calculations that would likely cause my brain to explode if I somehow managed to find those same thoughts in my head.

“Keep me informed on your progress, will ya?” I asked as I left his shop.

“Yup.”

During the fifteen minute walk home I let my imagination drift to where in time I might like to visit should my friend actually become successful in his latest endeavor. The future would be interesting, but that might be like peeking at the birthday presents a week before the party. No, I think past history would be fascinating to explore. Like, for example, I’d love to go back in time to the Phanerzoic Eon. You know, that span of time from 245 to 65 million years ago when dinosaurs walked the earth. I think it would be fascinating to find a forest of the amazing conifer, that until the early 1940s, was presumed to be extinct.

 ‘Miss Grace’ stands proudly before her ancient ancestor, Metasequoia glyptostroboides in the garden at Iseli Nursery.

Metasequoia glyptostroboides (the Dawn Redwood) is a giant deciduous conifer that dates back many millions of years ago and was rediscovered growing in China in 1944. Since that time it has been propagated and grown throughout the world. A new slower growing form as been discovered as a witches’ broom and is called ‘Miss Grace’. This exciting new form should fit in most any garden and may allow some a sense of travelling back in time millions of years.

Great in the garden landscape and suitable for container gardening, this Zone 5 plant could be grown as a larger specimen on the patio or deck for a number of years. It’s yellowish to gray/green foliage turns into tones of orange and red in autumn. As it drops its foliage, the color and texture of its bark continues the show through winter.

Yes, I’d like to visit the past and observe history in the making, but while I wait for my friend to achieve success with his latest invention, I’ll be satisfied making my own history while relaxing in my conifer garden.

Ed-
Conifer Lover

Are you a Conehead?

Abies koreana ‘Aurea’

I have considered myself a Conehead for many years now, and yet, I don’t claim to come from France. I remember the first time I saw the Conehead sketch on Saturday Night Live back in the late 1970s. I told my friends back then that I was a true Conehead, unlike those on the TV. One of my friends mentioned that he had always thought that I was from another planet referring, I presume,  to my non-conformist wardrobe choices and lack of interest in the disco scene of the day.

Yes, even back in the late ’70s’ I was a Conehead – a conifer lover.  I love the year-round color that conifers can provide with their fantastic and sometimes seasonally changing foliage color, but quite often, it is the cones themselves that provide the color and seasonal interest.

Picea orientalis ‘Aureospicata’

My favorites begin as very colorful red or purple “buds” that grow  into symmetrically balanced spirals of winged pockets designed to  protect the seed as it develops and then allows the seed to launch into the wind or be relocated by birds or other wildlife at maturity.

Very colorful cones may be discovered growing on some cultivars of Abies koreana (Korean Fir), Picea abies (Norway Spruce), Picea orientalis (Oriental Spruce), Pinus parviflora (Japanese White Pine) or Pseudotsuga menziesii (Douglas Fir). These colorful cones can add excitement and interest to the spring and early summer garden. The detail in these young cones can be stunning, often only visible with a magnifying glass or a good macro lens on the  camera.

Pseudotsuga menziesii ‘Blue’

As the cones continue to grow and mature through the summer months, their color may change and become darker or even tinged with a different hue. Most will begin to ooze resin which can actually sparkle in the early morning or late afternoon sunlight. At maturity, many cones will have turned brown and the seed-holding pockets will have spread and opened allowing the seeds to escape. The larger dried cones are what we often see used decoratively in flower arrangements or in wreathes and swags during the winter holidays.

Cones add to the multi-seasonal appeal of conifers and are one of the reasons many gardeners consider themselves Coneheads all over the world.

Ed-
Conifer Lover

As always, thanks to my friends at Iseli Nursery for the photo links.

Mother and child reunion

Picea orientalis ‘Skylands’ is a majestic golden colored spruce tree. One of its desirable features is that it begins to set cones at a fairly young age. The purplish red cones, both, female and male, add real color contrast and interest against the golden yellow foliage of this beautiful tree.

One of the advantages of a tree with prolific annual cone formation is that thousands and thousands of seed may be collected and germinated. Iseli Nursery began germinating seed collected from the two large specimens of ‘Skylands’ located in the Jean Iseli Memorial Garden in the early 1990’s. Literally thousands of seeds have been carefully  planted, germinated and observed ever since.

Picea orientalis ‘Skylands’ and one of its offspring

Naturally, when growing thousands of conifer seedlings, some variation will be apparent. Some of the seedlings appear almost identical to the parent cultivar with similar foliage color and rate of growth. Others may have a tendency to be more green in color or even have a faster, more open habit than the original. What Iseli is looking for though are plants with a more compact form, more intense golden yellow color, resistance to foliar sunburn, resistance to pests, etc.

Over the years, selections with the best characteristics are made for continued observation. From time to time, some of the lesser seedlings are made available to collectors who  may begin to propagate and distribute them as new cultivars. Meanwhile, back at the nursery, the folks at Iseli continue the evaluation process until one or two seedlings with extraordinary characteristics are chosen for production. Cuttings from those few selected new cultivars are then propagated and the inventory of those selections begins to expand. Eventually, those new cultivars are given names  and made available to the retail market.

One of those original seedlings from back in the early ’90’s is coming very close to that final stage right now. Currently referred to as Picea orientalis ‘Skylands’ [#1 Seedling], this new cultivar is truly exciting! UPDATE: Iseli has just informed me that they are now marketing this exciting new plant with the name, Picea orientalis ‘Firefly’.

‘Skylands’ [#1 Seedling] ‘Firefly’ is a much more compact grower than its mother growing just 4-6 inches per year instead of the 12″+ annual growth rate of ‘Skylands’. The new cultivar also has brighter, lemon yellow foliage on densely clothed branches forming a compact golden pyramid. I suspect this small tree will grow tall in time but should remain comparatively narrow.

The photo above shows both the “mother” and “child” growing near one another in the garden at Iseli. The ‘Skylands’ in the background is just over 30 feet tall at perhaps 35 years old, while [#1 Seedling] ‘Firefly’ is nearly 42 inches tall at 17 years. Seedlings tend to grow more slowly in their younger years and as they begin to mature, their annual  growth rate stabilizes.

Picea orientalis ‘Firefly’

I am looking forward to this outstanding new cultivar being named and made available to the retail market. I know several people that feel they don’t have room in their gardens for ‘Skylands’. When they see this new cultivar, they will jump at the chance to have its bright golden foliage and compact form highlight a special place in their own landscape.

Ed-
Conifer Lover

Humpty Dumpty and the Hobbit

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you’ve discovered my fascination with fantasy creatures of folklore and modern fiction. I loved fairy-tales as a child, and I presume that some of that influence inspires my love of dwarf, miniature and unusual conifers. Many of them look like they were born in our imaginations!

Picea glauca ‘Humpty Dumpty’

Most everyone is familiar with a very common conifer (though they may not realize it) called the Dwarf Alberta Spruce. Picea glauca ‘Conica’ was one of the first dwarf conifers I learned way-back-when. A very slow growing form of the White Spruce, ‘Conica’ was discovered in 1904 near Lake Leggan, Alberta, Canada. Much slower growing than its parent, ‘Conica’ is a cone-shaped small tree with rich grass-green foliage.

One of the interesting “features” of ‘Conica’ is that it can be genetically unstable. Sometimes a branch will “sport” or “revert” and begin to grow with needles and growth rates very different from the parent plant. A reversion occurs when a new branch begins to grow at a rate similar to the species, Picea glauca. Left unchecked, these types of growth will quickly out grow and overtake the slower habit of ‘Conica’ leaving the gardener with a large tree that they did not intend.

Other odd growth sports can be found from time to time and they may range from very tight, congested branches and tiny foliage called witches’ brooms, to foliage of a different color as with, P.g. ‘Arneson’s Blue’ with its mottled shades of blue foliage or P.g. ‘Rainbow’s End’ with its golden yellow second flush of growth each year.

Picea glauca ‘Hobbit’

Two of my favorite cultivars were discovered as witches’ brooms and have been given names right out of fantasy literature. The first is P. g. ‘Humpty Dumpty’ with its slowly mounding conical shape. ‘Humpty Dumpty’ grows at about two thirds the rate of ‘Conica’ with perfectly scaled, small needles of rich green. Perfect for the rock garden or in containers.

Picea glauca ‘Hobbit’ is a half sized delight in the garden. As a youngster, ‘Hobbit’ is a plump little buddy in the rock garden or on the patio in a container. With maturity, his broad conical form will develop. Both cultivars have a tremendous amount of character as they grow and mature and neither will outgrow even the smallest gardens.

Ed-
Conifer Lover

Nuggets of pure gold

My miniature container gardens have really come to life the past few weeks. All the dwarf and miniature conifers are pushing their new growth and the companion succulents and mini-heathers are performing admirably. Two of the hot spots in my containers right now are both miniature Hinoki Cypress cultivars selected for their bright gold foliage color and extremely slow growth rates.

Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Golden Sprite'

Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Golden Sprite’ has been a favorite of mine for many years. This little nugget of gold has tiny foliage that slowly grows into an irregularly shaped mound that is broader than tall. At fifteen years old, my oldest specimen is nearly 10 inches across and approximately seven inches tall. The foliage is so tight that I can barely stick a finger into this plant. I love its unusual mounded shape – this one really has a lot of character.

Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Butter Ball'

Another golden nugget of conifer joy is Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Butter Ball’. At first glance, you might think it’s identical to ‘Golden Sprite’, but upon closer inspection you’ll find that it is a more open grower giving it a chance to “breathe” a little bit. The tiny foliage is more a lemon-yellow color and it is noticeably looser than that of ‘Golden Sprite’ suggesting a slightly faster growth rate. Mine is still quite young, and it will have many more years in its current container before I will need to become concerned with transplanting it into the garden.

Both these little golden nuggets are valuable additions to my container garden. As they mature, I look forward to placing them in my rock garden (which will give me an excuse to purchase a couple more small ones to re-plant into containers.)

Ed-
Conifer Lover