Plant of the Month February 2025
GENERAL INFORMATION: My plant is over 30 years old. It has grown slowly from a fist-sized ball. After 12 years, it was shading 1/3 of the scree bed. I asked to have it removed. My gardener just removed the lower branches which was great. However, it still produced too much shade so we cloud-pruned it to produce dappled shade below.
Synonym: ‘Mikko’, 'Squarosa Snow’.
Common Name: ‘Snow’ Sawara False-cypress, Japanese False-cypress, White Tip False-Cypress.
Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Snow' -2025.
Life Cycle: Dwarf woody evergreen coniferous shrub with several stems.
Height: Grows to 2m high, spreading to 2m wide in a round shape.
Bark: Reddish-brown, furrowed, eventually peels in thin strips.
Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Snow' - bark.
Flower: Conifer, so no flowers. May produce small rounded cones. My 30-year old shrub has not done so.
Leaves: Evergreen, with small scaly green-blue needles in dense sprays. New foliage has white tips which darken with age. More white in semi shade.
Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Snow' - needles.
Range: Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Snow' with white foliage. Before pruning, 2004.
Range: Chamaecyparis pisifera is native to Japan.
CULTIVATION:
Plant: where it is out of strong winds and very hot sun.
Light: Full sun to part shade.
Soil: Most soils, preferably slightly acidic.
Water: Moist and well drained situation.
USDA Hardiness: Zone 4 -8.
Companion planting: In rock garden or trough when small. Specimen when older.
Pruning: No pruning is necessary if planted in the correct place. “Dwarf” is a misleading term. (Smaller than the 20m of Chamaecyparis pisifera.) A cloud-pruned shrub will reduce size and produce an accent or a focal point. Select the branches to keep. Tie bags over these to judge the result. Then remove the unwanted wood. Each branch can be trimmed regularly to form cloud shapes.
Chamaecyparis pisifera before pruning.
Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Snow' - winter lights.
Propagation: Try stem cuttings in late fall.
Pest and Diseases: Usually trouble free.
Native Alternatives: Chamaecyparis thyoides ‘Ericoides’ - Atlantic white cedar.
References:
https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=279623
https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/chamaecyparis-pisifera-snow/
Text and images supplied by Anna Leggatt (Toronto Master Gardener)