Conifers in the City

Find more information at www.seattle.gov/trees

What are Conifers? Conifers are trees (and a few ground-hugging woody shrubs) that produce cones. Many conifers, like pines, firs, and spruces, have needles. Others, like cypresses, junipers, and false cedars, have scale-like leaves. Most conifers are evergreen throughout winter— but a few, like larches and dawn redwoods, are deciduous and change color in autumn before dropping their needles. You can identify most conifers by their distinctive cones. But look closely! There are some tricksters in the family. Yews, for instance, have cones that are that are bright red and very berry-like. Ways to Keep Your Conifers 10 Reasons to Plant, Maintain, and Cherish Conifers 5 Healthy and Happy 1. Evergreen conifers reduce surface 4. A variety of conifers add structure run-off — year-round. and interest to your garden design. 1. Never top your trees. Topping deprives a tree of its Unlike deciduous trees which drop their leaves Ever since 19th century explorer and plant lead branches and invites decay into the trunk. Most in winter, evergreen conifers grow and absorb collector David Douglas sent seed cones back trees never recover from topping and slowly die. groundwater throughout Seattle’s winter rainy to Scotland’s Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, NW 2. Remove ivy and other vines from trunks. season. By sucking up rain, conifers reduce the conifers have added elegance to formal garden Untended, ivy will grow up into the canopy, block run-off that pollutes our lakes, rivers, streams, planning. Varying in height, texture, and color, life-giving sunlight, and choke the tree. Ivy also and waterways. conifers offer yearlong interest to any landscape. harbors unwanted pests like rats and invites decay 2. Conifers can stabilize slopes and 5. Properly placed, conifers provide a 8. In our maritime climate, conifers into the tree trunk. prevent slides — for hundreds of years. living privacy screen. thrive and need little maintenance. 3. Consider the eventual height and girth of the conifer. Make sure you have appropriate space to Most conifers are long-lived and thrive in the Annoying neighbors? Many Our native conifers (and many species from Asia) plant a large conifer. Trees under power lines must poor-to-moderate soil and hilly terrain of Seattle. conifers, such as our native love rain and coastal fog. Although you must stay below 20’ at maturity (eliminating all but the Correctly planted, conifers can anchor slopes and hemlocks and cedars, have water recently planted trees in the dry summer shrubbier conifers). All trees should be planted 5’ prevent soil erosion. thick evergreen foliage and months, after a few years most trees won’t need from sewer and water lines. sweeping low branches summertime watering. Choose carefully: if you 3. Natural birdfeeders, conifers sustain that can block unwanted plan for your conifer’s eventual size and shape, 4. Choose a variety that will do well. Conifers prefer a variety of wildlife. sightlines. Conifers also are almost no pruning will be needed. sun. But do your research. There are some conifers, effective noise barriers. like hemlocks, that tolerate shade. Chickadees, wood warblers, 9. Without conifers, Lewis & Clark would 5. Prune carefully, if at all. Most conifers require little and nuthatches dine on tiny 6. Conifers keep our air fresh and clean. have been up a creek. pruning. A few conifers, like cypresses and junipers insects they find in conifer Not only do most conifers have a pleasant Led by native guides, early explorers travelled in can be shaped into hedges, but beware! If you cut branches, bark, and cones. aromatic scent, they also cleanse the air by traditional ways. It is well documented that Lewis back beyond the green growth, those bare spots Finches forage for seed they trapping dust and other pollutants in their dense and Clark journeyed westward by dugout canoe. will take years to recover. find in broken cones. And foliage. And, like all trees and woody shrubs, they Without western redcedar, the wood prized by berry-eaters—like bluebirds, store carbon and give off oxygen. NW Indians for their boats and totem poles, robins, and thrushes—feast on the fruit-like seed Lewis & Clark may never have reached the cones of the juniper and yew. Topping makes your 7. Cut energy costs and reduce your Pacific Ocean. carbon footprint—with conifers. tree less safe and more expensive to maintain. A tall conifer can give you 10. Not only are conifers long-lived, shade in the summer and they’re older than the dinosaurs! Trees react to topping a wind break in the winter. This The oldest known conifers appeared on earth by sending out shoots. means a strategically planted nearly 300 million years ago. Some conifers like Often surpassing the tree can keep you comfortable dawn redwoods and monkey-puzzle trees are original height of the tree, and save you money! “living fossils,” virtually unchanged since the these shoots are weakly Mesozoic Era. attached to the main trunk and can become unsafe.

Photo by Ramie Pierce