SPECIAL USES. Foundation planting, specimens, hedges (do not prune as much as privet), bonsai.
Chamaecyparis (Retinospora) Cupressaceae False Cypress, White Cedar
Actually this is an evergreen that grows to a hundred feet, but it also comes in a wide variety of two-foot dwarfs. Basically the tree is pyramidal and has leaves more like scales than needles. They are very dense and tight, on drooping branches. Some of the dwarf species are C. obtusa coespitosa (tennis ball), C. lawsoniana, C. compacta, C. compacta glauca, C. nana compressa.
CARE. Acid soil; needs moisture, due to shallow roots. Fertilize, prune some to keep shapely, root-prune for rock gardens.
PROPAGATION. Seeds from the small cones.
SPECIAL USES. Bonsai, rock gardens, specimens.
Chamaedaphne calyculata Ericaceae Leatherleaf
Evergreen shrub that is a native bog dweller and therefore good for locations unsuitable for many plants. The evergreen two-inch leaves look rusty underneath and are dull brown in winter; branches are sparse. In spring it has dangling clusters of little white flowers. One-foot variety nana effective in moist part of rock gardens.
CARE. Moist location, acid soil with peat.
PROPAGATION. Seeds, cuttings from ripe wood (rooted under glass), layering.