Southern Japanese Hemlock Tsuga sieboldii
- Phonetic Spelling
- SOO-guh see-BOLD-ee-eye
- Description
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Southern Japanese Hemlock is a needled evergreen conifer from Japan that can grow up to 100 feet tall but usually reaches 50 feet in cultivation. The trunk can be up to 8 feet in diameter. It sometimes grows as a multi-trunked tree and is rather slow-growing. It is listed as near threatened in its native habitat.
Preference is for moist well-drained soils on the acid side in sun to partial shade. It can be grown as an ornamental tree or for screening and has been used in bonsai.
Problems: Scales, mites, wooly adelgid, but less prone to these than T. caroliniana.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Cultivars / Varieties:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Tsuga
- Species:
- sieboldii
- Family:
- Pinaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Wood used for lumber
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Japan
- Wildlife Value:
- Provides seeds for birds and wildlife cover
- Play Value:
- Wildlife Cover/Habitat
- Wildlife Food Source
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Needled Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Conical
- Dense
- Oval
- 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
- High Organic Matter
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Shallow Rocky
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Fruit Description:
- Sessile seed cones are borne on outer branches, green ripening to pale brown, to 1 inch long. Pollen cones are 0.1 to 0.2 inches reddish-brown, maturing yellow, crowded together
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Purple/Lavender
- Red/Burgundy
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Insignificant
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- The male flowers are very small at only 2 mm, globular in shape and cherry-red. The female flowers are slightly larger at 5 mm, purple in color and oval.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Needled Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Long-lasting
- Leaf Type:
- Needles
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Linear
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Width:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Description:
- Loosely arranged alternate needles are flattened, grooved above, 0.3 to 0.5 inches long, widening gradually toward a notched tip and entire margins. Undersides have two white indistinct stomatal bands.
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Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Dark Brown
- Dark Gray
- Surface/Attachment:
- Scaly
- Bark Plate Shape:
- Square
- Bark Description:
- The bark is gray-brown to gray, rough and scaly forming quadrangular plates.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Gray/Silver
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- Braches a smooth and light brown, aging to gray. Buds are small and pointed.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Meadow
- Recreational Play Area
- Slope/Bank
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Asian Garden
- Design Feature:
- Accent
- Hedge
- Screen/Privacy
- Attracts:
- Small Mammals
- Songbirds
