
The evergreen foliage of an Atlas cedar tree is an excellent sight to behold with its bluish-greenish needles and cascading branches. It sure looks like an eternal waterfall in the garden.
The weeping blue Atlas cedar tree are native to the Atlas Mountains in Algeria and Morocco, hence can withstand heat and drought. They belong best to the U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones of 6 through 8.
This tree is also known as the Cedar of Lebanon or Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca Pendula,’ they belong to the evergreen conifer tree variety. The graceful branches provide a visual delight to the landscape and are easily cultivated. They are subspecies of C. libani and are stretched face down unless they are appropriately pruned and stacked. The evergreen conifer is low maintenance and also a beautiful piece of nature for any garden; planting it will add to the beauty of the landscape. Let us take a look into the ways to care for these enthralling evergreen conifers.
Planting the Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar Tree
These trees require ample amount of sunlight with minimal shade. Plant them in an area where they have a leisurely place to grow as they tend to spread in their vicinity. Crowded areas will limit and stunt their growth. Also, do not plant them in passages or walkways as they might obstruct the area. They can stand heat and drought and must be protected from extreme windy conditions. As they are intolerable to be transplanted, they must be purchased in pots. They require well-drained acidic to alkaline soil, they can also grow well in sandy and clay soils. These trees do not grow well in extremely wet soil. So make sure they have an average to dry moisture level.
Pruning the Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar Tree
► They grow up to 10 to 15 feet in height and spread 6 to 10 feet wide, if staked young they can grow up to 40 feet tall.
► Stake them by digging a hole of a 4-by-4-inch post which is approximately 1 foot shorter than the desired height of the tree. Plant the tree in front of the post and tie it up with nylon stockings, nylon stockings give flexibility and do not cut into the trees.
► Prune the extra branches and tie the central leader to the post.
► Design the branches according to your ornamental idea by pruning off the crossing branches and allowing lateral branching.
► If you wish to grow it like an espalier, prune off the lower branches to form a flat bed. Tie the branches to the frame and keep cutting off branches that grow backward and forward.
Pests and Diseases
These evergreen conifers rarely experience any pest and disease problems except for the occasional sapsucker trouble. To rid the tree of this pest, inspect it from time to time for rows of holes in the tree trunk and apply or spray burlap for good riddance. Some other minor care should be taken to prevent scale insects, deodar weevils, tip blight, and root rot. Apart from these, the trees don’t suffer any serious issues regarding pest maintenance.
These trees look attractive with their bluish-green icy needles and are easy to shape and maintain providing an evergreen oasis for the landscape.