Other Names:  Japanese Falsecypress, Sawara Falsecypress

Description:

A miniature garden evergreen producing soft sea green foliage with yellow-gold tips, a great choice for adding texture to a garden, also used for bonsai; prefers humid environments

Ornamental Features

Parson Falsecypress is a dwarf conifer which is primarily valued in the garden for its interestingly mounded form. It has attractive gold-tipped bluish-green foliage. The threadlike sprays of foliage are highly ornamental and turn coppery-bronze in the fall, which persists throughout the winter.

Landscape Attributes

Parson Falsecypress is a dense multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a mounded form. It lends an extremely fine and delicate texture to the landscape composition which should be used to full effect.

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. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Parson Falsecypress is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Parson Falsecypress will grow to be about 14 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 14 inches. It tends to fill out right to the ground and therefore doesn't necessarily require facer plants in front. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 60 years or more.

This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. 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. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.

Parson Falsecypress makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing a canvas of foliage against which the thriller plants stand out. 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.