Cypress, Fernspray Gold Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Fernspray Gold' Height: 12 feet Spread: 8 feet
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Hardiness Zone: 5a Other Names: Hinoki Cypress Description: A colorful addition to any home landscape or garden, this compact shrub features bright golden foliage all season long on a narrow pyramidal form, much like a dwarf version of the species; best used as a color accent in the garden Ornamental Features Cypress, Fernspray Gold is a dwarf conifer which is primarily valued in the landscape or garden for its interestingly mounded form. It has attractive gold evergreen foliage. The scale-like sprays of foliage are highly ornamental and turn chartreuse in the fall, which persists throughout the winter. The shaggy antique red bark adds an interesting dimension to the landscape. Landscape Attributes Cypress, Fernspray Gold is a multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a mounded form. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition. This is a relatively low maintenance shrub. When pruning is necessary, it is recommended to only trim back the new growth of the current season, other than to remove any dieback. Deer don't particularly care for this plant and will usually leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics. Cypress, Fernspray Gold is recommended for the following landscape applications; Planting & Growing Cypress, Fernspray Gold will grow to be about 12 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 8 feet. It tends to fill out right to the ground and therefore doesn't necessarily require facer plants in front, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 50 years or more. This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. You may want to keep it away from hot, dry locations that receive direct afternoon sun or which get reflected sunlight, such as against the south side of a white wall. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. This plant should be periodically fertilized throughout the active growing season with a specially-formulated acidic fertilizer. It is not particular as to soil type, but has a definite preference for acidic soils. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments, and will benefit from being planted in a relatively sheltered location. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America. Cypress, Fernspray Gold makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its height, it is often used as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden. Special Attributes Sheds some inside foliage in the autumn or spring, few to some 1/4 to 1/2 inch seeds. Chamaecyparis are not classified as toxic to people or pets.
