Blue Moss Cypress Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Boulevard'
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- kam-ay-SIP-a-ris pi-SIF-er-a
- Description
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'Boulevard' is a dense pyramidal semi-dwarf evergreen shrub that features soft, billowing mounds of blue-green foliage on heavily branched stems. It is slow-growing, typically reaching 5-6’ tall in 10 years and may mature at 12’ tall, but can be pruned to maintain a particular size and form.
The blue-green foliage is showy and holds its color well through winter. The peeling reddish bark adds additional interest. It can be grown in containers when younger, used as a specimen or a hedge. Preference is for any moist well-drained soil in full sun to part shade with protection from windy conditions.
Quick ID Hints:
- Gymnosperm with bluish, soft pliable, linear leave
- Dense, columnar gmnosperm shrub to 10-20' tall.
Female cones lacking in this juvenile cultivar.
Utilized as a specimen shrub or as a hedge or border. Appears to be juniver-like, prickly, but is very soft with pliable leaves. Desired for the bluish foliage utilized in contrast to other colors in landscape. Regarded as heat tolerant. Short-termed landscape plant, opens up and becomes leggy with age of couple of decades. Prefers loamy well-drained soils of acidic nature, in full sun.
VIDEO Created by Elizabeth Meyer for "Trees, Shrubs and Conifers" a plant identification course offered in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Chamaecyparis
- Species:
- pisifera
- Family:
- Cupressaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Division
- Stem Cutting
- Dimensions:
- Height: 5 ft. 0 in. - 20 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 2 ft. 0 in. - 15 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Shrub
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Needled Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Dense
- Pyramidal
- Growth Rate:
- Slow
- Maintenance:
- Low
- Texture:
- Fine
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Available Space To Plant:
- 6-feet-12 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 4a, 4b, 5b, 5a, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8b, 8a
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Fruit:
- Fruit Description:
- No true fruit - female seed-bearing cones are green when immature turning to brown.
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Flowers:
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Insignificant
- Flower Description:
- No true flowers - the pollen bearing cones are small and often reddish, growing from the branch tips.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Needled Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Blue
- Gray/Silver
- Green
- White
- Leaf Feel:
- Soft
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Deciduous Leaf Fall Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Leaf Type:
- Needles
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Description:
- Soft, blue-green leaves with silvery under markings are awl-shaped and curving into a fine point but not prickly. Leaves of juvenile type, soft, pliable, short-linear, silvery blue-green to grayish-blue.
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Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Dark Brown
- Red/Burgundy
- Surface/Attachment:
- Exfoliating
- Peeling
- Bark Description:
- Reddish-brown bark peels in strips
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Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Container
- Lawn
- Landscape Theme:
- Rock Garden
- Winter Garden
- Design Feature:
- Accent
- Border
- Hedge
- Screen/Privacy
- Specimen
