Dwarf and miniature conifers are thejewels of the evergreens. Theirsophisticated colors and textures flattermodern architecture. Their small sizes fitperfectly in the small spaces around thehome. No matter how small your garden is,you can find room for one of these. Manydo well in containers, which means you canmove them around or even take them withyou. These gourmet delights have beenbred with as much care and artistry assummer's flowering plants, and they keeptheir beauty and interest all year round.Best of all, they're bursting with character.

If you're like me, at this time of yearborders get boring and I miss the cheerfulwelcome of summer flowers spilling out ofurns and baskets near the front door. Acabbage, however colorful, just doesn'tstrike the right note. Fortunately, I'vediscovered dwarf conifers.There is practically nothing bad about

dwarf conifers. They work beautifully incontainers to accent architectural details.They are very low maintenance. Most ofthese plants will never outgrow theirspace or need severe pruning. Onceestablished, they're not usually heavy

drinkers. They not only don't needfertilization, fertilizing would promoterapid growth! The only downside is price. Unless

you're a collector, you may not be used topaying over fifty dollars for a plant a foothigh. You have to remember that theseplants are rare and slow growing. It mayhave taken five years for the plant to growtwelve inches. These are investmentpieces. If you can only afford a youngplant, accept its slow growth and treat itlike a bonsai.

The Jewels of WinterDWARF CONIFERS

TEXT BY J ANE B ED INGERPHOTOGRAPHY BY RANDALL C . SM I TH AND J ANE B ED INGER

Assorted containers in a patio garden

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Although many local nurseries havesome dwarf conifers, two nurseries inparticular have good collections. ValleyNursery stocks a wide selection of reliablefavorites, including affordable starterplants. Savage Plants and Landscapecaters to local collectors looking forchoices or unusual specimens. They werehappy to introduce me to some beautifulplants that get overlooked in summer.Choosing the Right PlantAt Valley Nursery, Terri Mitchell helped

me navigate through their manyselections. “Just about every kind of coniferthat you can get full size, you can also getin a dwarf variety, and in every color,” shesays. She wasn't exaggerating. Fromspecimens that look like dollhouse versionsof forest giants to oddities with leaves likeshoelaces, Valley Nursery stocks a dwarfconifer to suit every taste and budget. Andcolors! Savage Nursery and Landscapeshowcases a golden yew, Taxus cuspidata“Dwarf Bright Gold” whose needles areyellow as any blossom, plus it's dotted withbright dazzling red berries.Terri explained that some dwarf

conifers are simply very slow growingvariations of full size species, but othersare truly miniature versions with tinyneedles and branches. First, she showed me Chamaecyparis

pisifera, White Pygmy Sawara Cypress.This petite pom-pom is smaller than somepinecones. Its soft needles invite petting, soplace it where visitors can enjoy it. Best ofall, it will keep all of those characteristics foryears to come, without any special care. Inten years, the puffball may have grown to atmost two feet wide, but it will still be a soft,dense pillow. At Savage Plants, CarolynIrwin introduced me to Pinus strobus “BlueShag,” another touchable treat with thelong blue needles of a classic pine, but withan extra softness I can't resist. Ordinaryconifers get pushed to the back of thegarden or grow so tall you can't appreciatethe texture of their needles. Theseminiatures are designed to be placed in theforeground, where all their specialcharacteristics can be appreciated.Smallness is relative. Picea abies

“Hillside Upright” Hillside Upright NorwaySpruce, a semi-dwarf with all the features

of its big brother, may eventually reach tenfeet high after many, many years. On theother hand, the usual Norway sprucequickly grows to 80 feet! So if you love theclassic Christmas tree shape and red budsof a spruce but aren't interested in raisingcommercial timber in your back yard,choose Hillside Upright. The point is, findout how big your particular specimen willbe in ten years and plant accordingly.Some plants are not dwarf at all.

They're weeping or prostrate varieties thatgrow downward or outward instead of up.One of my favorites is Cedrus deodoraSnowsprite Compact SnowspriteDeodora. It has clusters of delicateceladon needles, seafoam green, with thefine, pendulous, airy growth suggestive ofa lotus vine. “Imagine this spreading overa rock garden,” Terri suggests.If this is your first dwarf conifer, ask an

experienced nursery staffperson to helpyou pick the right plant. They can helpyou decide which individual plants will behappy in a rock garden or need to betucked into a sunny corner. Megan Stoll atSavage Plants has a special knack forchoosing companion plants that can turna container into a four-season bouquet.Caring for Dwarf ConifersThe best time to transplant dwarf

conifers is between October to March,anytime the ground is not frozen but theplants are in a semi-dormant to dormantcondition. Most mini-conifers wantconditions not too different from their big

brothers. Plants with lacy leaves, similar toour native cedars, are sunbathers. Theylove the light and heat but despise drafts.Members of the Mugo Pine family, on theother hand, can endure rough conditions.They're descended from the tough SwissMountain Pine and flourish in a containeror as a foundation plant and transplanteasily.Most dwarf conifers can live in

containers for years. About every threeyears, remove the plant from its containerand root-prune the root balls. Then addfresh potting soil. Early each spring putfresh potting mix on top of the soil andwork it lightly into the existing soil mix.

Tsugahet ‘Thorsens Weeping’

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Regular watering during summer isessential. Remember, potted plants dryout much faster than those planted in theground.Although many dwarf conifers tolerate

pruning, it's rarely necessary. Theexception is when a dwarf plant sends outa fast-growing or larger limb. This roguegrowth can overwhelm the dwarf habit, soprune reversions as soon as they appear.Although it might be tempting to bring

these beauties indoors as holidaydecorations, don't. Even conifers godormant in the winter, and thetemperatures inside a house can wakethem up. The shock of returning to icynights and wet winds can kill.

Sungold Dwarf Threadbranch Cypress'shaggy mound and the bonsai-like GoldenDward Hinoki Cypress glow warmly in thewinter sun

(Components of photo on left)

Left, Chamaecyparis pisifera White PygmySawara CypressCenter, Picea abies 'Hillside Upright' HillsideUpright Norway SpruceRight, Cedrus deodora Snowsprite CompactSnowsprite DeodoraShown with Euphorbia Rudolph

(Components of photo on left)

Even within a single range of color, size, shape, and texture, you have choices! For scale, atthe top of the picture, Kramers Rote HeatherTop left, Chamaecyparis pisifera minima 'Golden Pincushion', Golden Pincushion Cypresshas the lacy leaves of an arbor vitae tipped in delicious warm colorTop right, Picea glauca 'Elf', Elf Dwarf Alberta Spruce, an extremely diminutive, dense butfinely textured globe that after ten years may reach 1.5-2.5 acrossAt the bottom, Pinus mugo 'Slowmound', Slowmound Mugo Pine. A true dwarf, it won't exceedfive feet in ten years

Featured Nurseries

Valley Nursery20882 Bond Rd. NEPoulsbo, WA 98370360.779.3806800.797.2819

Savage Plants and Landscape6810 NE State Hwy. 104Kingston, WA 98346360.297.8711

WSH&G|Winter 05/06|www.WSHG.net Copyright © WestSound Home & Garden Magazine/Wet Apple Media, Inc.