The hardy Blue Cypress (also known as the Blue Lawson Cypress) is a real speed demon when it comes to growth, provided it’s in the right spot. This evergreen beauty keeps its stunning bluish-green needles all through the winter, but if you want that foliage to stay lush and vibrant, you’ve got to get the nutrients right. The trick? Don’t overdo it—these conifers are actually pretty sensitive to over-fertilizing. Here’s the lowdown on how to feed and care for your Blue Cypress the right way.
Picking the Perfect Spot for Your Blue Cypress
Before you get busy planting your Blue Cypress, you’ll want to prep the soil. Generally speaking, these evergreens aren’t too picky and can handle most soil types. The only real dealbreaker is soil that’s very high in lime (alkaline). If your soil is a bit too chalky, you can usually fix it by mixing in some peat.
To give your Blue Cypress the best possible start, try these soil prep tips:
- Mix some compost or horn shavings into the soil in the planting hole to give the young tree a nice nutrient boost.
- If you prefer to keep things simple, just use a specialized cypress fertilizer according to the package directions.
Giving Young Plants a Helping Hand
Until your young trees develop a massive, established root system, they’ll need a little extra help with fertilizer to ensure they’re getting all their essential micronutrients. This extra care supports healthy growth and helps build up their resistance to diseases.
A great trick is to spread a layer of mulch, grass clippings, or fallen leaves around the base of the trees. This mulch layer keeps the soil moist and prevents pesky weeds from moving in.
Older Plants Can Mostly Fend for Themselves
Once your conifers are healthy and well-established, you often don’t need to worry about fertilizing them at all. By this stage, they usually have an extensive root system that pulls everything the tree needs right from the earth.
That said, you can still “pamper” your Blue Cypresses with a fresh layer of mulch. It’s also a great idea to gently work some mature compost into the top layer of soil during the spring and fall.
Potted Blue Cypresses Need Extra Love
When grown in containers, these ornamental trees can’t go hunting for nutrients on their own. You’ll need to be proactive with compost or fertilizer to keep the plant healthy and prevent those dreaded brown patches.
If you don’t have compost on hand, pick up a specialized cypress fertilizer from your local garden center. Just be sure to follow the instructions carefully—if you use too much, you might actually end up killing your tree.
