The Best Types And Varieties Of Conifers In A Pot For The Role Of A New Year Tree. Home Care. Photo

2023 Author: Ava Durham | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-11-27 07:13

Once, during the New Year holidays, friends turned to me with the question of how they could save the tree. Glancing at the gray-green tree in the far corner of the room, surrounded by a carpet of crumbling needles, I sadly stated that the tree was no longer alive. Unfortunately, the tiny conifers marketed as Christmas trees are not originally planned for a long, happy life. But many deliberately acquire such conifers in order not only to please themselves in the New Year, but also to acquire a new inhabitant of the garden, which can be planted in a permanent place in the spring. In this article I will tell you how to choose the right seedling and keep the tree in your apartment until spring.

As New Year's trees, large hypermarkets buy both thermophilic exotics and completely frost-resistant varieties, which after the holiday will be able to settle in the garden for a long time. Let's first figure out what kind of trees most often come across on New Year's showcases and determine the most promising ones.

Content:

• Canadian spruce "Konica"
• Nordman fir
• Korean fir
• Lawson's cypress
• Cypress
• General rules for choosing holiday conifers
• How to keep a Christmas tree until spring

Canadian spruce "Konica"

In most cases, in the role of New Year's decoration, you can find a Canadian spruce of the dwarf variety "Konika". The tiny size, dense fluffy crown and short needles make this tree absolutely charming and desirable as an interior decoration.

To make it more attractive, it is often decorated with small toys and tinsel. This type of spruce belongs to the 5th zone of frost resistance, that is, it can withstand frosts down to -30 degrees. It follows from this that with proper care, "Konika" is quite promising in gardens in the middle zone, and it makes sense to try to preserve the tree before planting it in the garden.

For some gardeners, the Canadian spruce of this variety has been growing for about 10 years and is a dense pyramidal tree of one meter height. The only drawback typical of "Konika" can be called burning of needles in winter, but this problem is easily solved by covering the crown with burlap.

Basically, such a Christmas tree belongs to unpretentious plants, requires minimal maintenance, tolerates partial shade and moderate watering. As New Year's, Canadian spruces with green needles (actually "Konica" itself) go on sale, but this spruce has other varieties.

The varieties Rainbow's End and Daisy's White outwardly differ little from "Konica", but in early spring the young growth of these trees has a very beautiful bright yellow growth. The Blue Wonder spruce is distinguished by its unusual blue color with its characteristic conical shape and dense arrangement of branches.

Nordman fir

In Europe and the USA, this type of fir is the main Christmas tree and is often called the "Danish tree". And if in our country the New Year tree mainly means pine, then abroad it is Nordman's fir.

The main advantage of fir over other coniferous trees, the same spruce or pine, is that its needles do not crumble for a long time after the tree has completely died. In addition, its needles are not prickly at all, they have a deep dark green color, and the reverse side is covered with a silvery-gray coating.

Thanks to the fluffy crown and rounded needles, this Christmas tree looks almost like a toy, and that is why it is so popular. In the West, there are entire farms that cultivate this type of fir for sale on New Year's holidays. Such "fir-trees" are most often cut down "to the very root", like our pines, and sometimes they are grown in containers and offered as living New Year's trees.

Such a fir can be distinguished by its non-prickly dark needles and two characteristic light stripes on the back of each needle. In addition, the fir needles are flat, and not four-sided, as in most types of spruce.

On the territory of Russia, the Nordman fir grows exclusively in the mountains of the Caucasus, which speaks of its thermophilicity. This species belongs to the 6th zone of winter hardiness (not lower than -23 degrees), which implies the presence of serious problems with wintering in the middle lane.

In places protected from strong winter winds and shelter in the first years after planting, this tree has some chances not to die in winter. But still, in some frosty winters, the crown will suffer greatly from freezing, and it will not be so fluffy and beautiful, the trunk may be bent. Of course, this fir will never reach such a height as in its homeland (60 meters) in a cold climate.

Korean fir

This tree looks very much like Nordman's fir, but differs from it in a high level of winter hardiness - zone 4 (up to -35 degrees). In adulthood, Korean fir and Nordman fir differ significantly from each other in height (the first does not grow above 15 meters, and the second will eventually reach 60 meters) and the shape of the crown. But at a young age, the seedlings of these species can only be distinguished by professionals.

The Korean fir has the same flat, completely non-prickly dark green needles, which on the reverse side also have a silvery color and two longitudinal stomata. Considering the above, we can only hope for the conscientiousness of the sellers, who can correctly indicate the species of the “Christmas tree” on the label.

Korean fir is a very promising tree for the garden. In recent years, landscape designers are increasingly using it in their work, and amateur gardeners also cannot resist the beauty of this tree, which looks like a Christmas tree from a fairy tale.

In addition, Korean fir tolerates partial shade well, and as an adult pleases with amazing erect cones, similar to candles. The only nuance that is important to consider when planting this fir is the negative impact of gassed air on it, so it is better to place the “Christmas tree” in a suburban area.

Lawson's cypress

One of the most popular conifers assigned to the role of the New Year tree. In the pre-holiday time, you can even find it in an ordinary grocery supermarket. Outwardly, the cypress is more similar to the juniper than to the tree or pine. The tree has flat branches, covered with small green needles-scales with a grayish-bluish tint, the shape of the bush is pyramidal. Usually such a named "Christmas tree" is sold in a bright New Year's pots, is lavishly decorated with tinsel and sometimes covered with artificial snow.

Lawson's cypress comes from North America and belongs to the 6th zone of frost resistance - up to -23 degrees. That is, this is not the most suitable tree for temperate latitudes. When planted in the garden, an exotic coniferous plant will require a lot of worries, in particular, almost all cypress trees are susceptible to sunburn at the end of winter, and this species also suffers from the winter cold. But it is also not easy to find a shelter for him, since this breed is susceptible to fungal diseases.

It is better to plant it in partial shade in a place protected from the wind in areas that are not blown through with a favorable microclimate. At some gardeners, I met Lawson's cypress growing on the site. However, the plant, usually, does not look the best way, and does not reach full decorative effect.

Cypress

Usually, on New Year's Eve, you can find a small "indoor" cypress "Aurea" on sale. As a rule, this conifer is more fortunate, and it is not burdened with festive decorations and is offered as an ordinary houseplant. Outwardly, the cypress is a dense pyramidal bush. Thin erect branches are covered with delicate scaly needles of light green color.

Cypress is an extremely thermophilic plant, and any attempts to plant it in a garden in the middle lane are doomed to failure. Therefore, the only way to preserve the tree is to grow it in a room culture. However, this is fraught with difficulties.

"Indoor" cypress cannot be kept on the windowsill of a city apartment together with other potted flowers. In winter, the temperature of the tree should not exceed +12 degrees. At the same time, cypress requires high humidity and moderate watering. In the absence of a humidifier, the bush will have to be sprayed at least three times a day, and watering is done about once a week with a small amount of water (about 200 ml).

In the summer, the cypress must be moved to the open air, where the tree is protected from extreme heat and regular abundant watering is provided, preventing the soil from drying out. As you can see, cypress in the room is a rather troublesome culture, so before buying such a “herringbone” it is important to weigh the pros and cons well.

General rules for choosing holiday conifers

Buying a live Christmas tree with the prospect of planting it in the garden is a smart decision based on the principles of respect for nature. In order for the idea to be implemented successfully, it is important to take into account some principles common to any coniferous plants:

• If the tree is treated with artificial snow or, worse, with glitter varnish, then it is better to refuse such a purchase, the tree has practically no chance of salvation, since such processing seriously disrupts the respiration processes of plants;
• Some conifers are originally grown in a container, while others are less fortunate - they are placed in a pot immediately before sale, undercutting the root system. In the second case, you will purchase a Christmas tree that will live a little longer than the felled one. Before buying, try to pull the Christmas tree by the trunk; in full-fledged seedlings, an earthen lump will easily come out of the pot and look like densely braided branches. The pot should be commensurate with the size of the crown, too small is a reason for suspicion.
• A coniferous plant with awakened buds and a young growth is an indicator that the tree is alive at the moment. But it will be much more difficult to keep a Christmas tree, which did not start growing until spring, than sleeping specimens. In addition, such untimely awakening weakens the plant.
• Try to shake the tree, if you notice increased shedding of the needles, set the pot aside. The physiology of most conifers is such that needles can persist on a tree for a long time after its death. If the needles have already begun to fall off profusely, then most likely in front of you is a dead tree.
• Living conifer needles usually have a slight sheen and elasticity. Brittle needles of a pale grayish color also indicate that the plant has died.

Recommendation: It often happens that living Christmas trees are bought completely spontaneously. But if you have a serious and balanced intention to purchase a Christmas tree with the prospect of planting it in the garden, then it is better to go for a seedling not to a grocery supermarket, but to a nursery. This will give you a healthy tree suitable for growing in your climate.

At the same time, be sure to ask in what conditions the seedling was kept before selling and try to maintain them. The best place for a tree from a nursery is a glazed unheated balcony. To protect the root ball from severe frosts, it is better to insulate the pot, but sometimes Christmas trees in nurseries are sold in special non-freezing containers.

How to keep a Christmas tree until spring

In an apartment for a Christmas tree, it is important to choose the coolest place, it is best that the temperature does not exceed +13 degrees. If the buds have started to grow, this means that the temperature is too high, and you need to find a cooler place.

It is also not necessary to put a tree in full shade, but direct sunlight for a coniferous plant during this period is undesirable. In a room with central heating, the Christmas tree will suffer greatly from dry air, so it needs regular spraying several times a day. You can place containers with water next to the tree or install a room humidifier.

For this purpose, you can also build a small greenhouse, but it is also not worth it to tightly wrap the seedling in a bag. In order not to provoke fungal diseases, it is very important to ensure good air exchange. Watering is carried out by immersing the pot in a container with settled water for a few minutes - until the root ball is saturated with moisture. For the Christmas tree, both overdrying and excessive soil moisture are equally dangerous.

It is better if the tree stays in the festive decoration for a minimum amount of time (no longer than a week). At the same time, it is important to select jewelry and tinsel, which is not difficult to remove, so as not to damage the needles and young twigs. Toys should be lightweight and placed on free suspensions; it is better to refuse clothespins. It is also better not to cover the soil in the pot with any decorative materials so that the roots can breathe freely and the ground does not become moldy.

It may seem to some that a live Christmas tree will be better on the street, but this is not entirely true. Even if the tree has not yet started to grow, it will be too large a temperature difference for it, because it has already adapted to the temperature regime in the store window. In addition, the root ball freezes too much, which will lead to the death of the plant.

In theory, a Christmas tree can spend the winter time in a deep snowdrift. But winters have long ceased to please us with a solid and stable snow cover, and with the alternation of prolonged thaws with frosts, this option can be completely dangerous.

It is necessary to plant a Christmas tree in the garden as soon as the ground thaws - approximately in March. At first, it is advisable to shade a young seedling (for example, wrap it in burlap), since the spring sun can cause burning of the needles.