A Statuesque Evergreen
Planting Spring-Flowering Bulbs
There’s still time to plant spring-flowering bulbs, but don’t delay. Daffodils, tulips, and hyacinths are still available. Spray for peach leaf curl with copper sulfate—peach and nectarine trees may suffer from this fungal disease without a protective spray. Clean up rose bushes by removing spent flowers and raking up old leaves, but wait until February for heavy pruning.
Winter Bird Feeding
Feed the birds this winter and enjoy the pleasure of their company. Bird feeders come in many styles and make wonderful gifts.
Incense Cedar (Calocedrus decurrens)
One of the finest conifers for large gardens is the grand, native California evergreen, the Incense Cedar. Its rich green foliage is aromatic with scale-like leaves that grow on pendulous branches. In the fall, it is ornamented with miniature, urn-shaped, reddish-brown cones that contrast subtly with the green leaves. Another striking feature, particularly noticeable on mature trees, is the soft-textured, shredding, cinnamon-colored bark on their wide, tapering trunks. People sometimes mistake the Incense Cedar for a redwood tree due to the similarity of the shredding bark.
Frequently seen as a single tree or in small groves in the Coast Range, this evergreen thrives anywhere from sea level to 8,000 feet. Mature trees vary from 75 to 100 feet tall with trunks from 2 to 4 feet in diameter. Despite their slow growth, Incense Cedars are versatile in landscapes:
- Young trees have a dense, narrow, columnar form, making them ideal for screens, hedges, or as a background for mixed borders.
- Older specimens provide a beautiful evergreen backdrop for small flowering trees like redbuds and dogwoods.
- They can be planted near walls due to their well-behaved root system.
- With foliage extending to the ground, they’re excellent for hiding unattractive areas or serving as windbreaks.
In the landscape, they typically grow 30 to 50 feet tall and 8 to 10 feet wide.
Growing Conditions
Incense Cedar is tolerant of a wide range of conditions:
- Shade-tolerant when young, it thrives in full sun or partial shade.
- Prefers moist, well-drained soil but is drought-tolerant once established.
- Adaptable to marginal soils.
For best results, plant trees in 5-gallon pots. Mulch newly planted trees with a deep, organic mulch of compost or bark. Water them regularly through dry weather until established. Once established, water deeply and infrequently—3 to 5 times per summer. Incense Cedars are practically pest-free and require no fertilizer or pruning.
Wildlife Benefits
These trees attract many birds, providing food and shelter for species like sparrows, hermit thrushes, siskins, flickers, and nuthatches.
John Muir’s Praise
John Muir found the Incense Cedar particularly beautiful, stating, “No waving fern-frond in shady dell is more unreservedly beautiful in form and texture, or half so inspiring in color and spicy fragrance.” This fine tree is attractive year-round and will add beauty and stature to your landscape or property.