Description
Tsuga – Hemlock –
There are 8 to 11 elegant evergreen monoecious, coniferous conical to pyramidal medium to large trees in the Pinaceae family, in this genus. They naturally occur in forest, 4 to 6 in Eastern Asia and 4 from North America. They produce flattened, usually linear leaves, with elevated mid vein beneath, are radially arranged or 2 ranked, and vary in length along the shoots. The small egg-oblong to almost spherical, terminal, pale to mid brown female cones become pendent as they mature, similar to those of Picea and drop off in the 2nd year, the male cones have few scales, and are almost spherical, up to 1/4″ across, and borne at the tips of lateral shoots. The bark is scaly and deeply furrowed with color ranging from gray to brown. Excellent specimen trees and very shade tolerant, especially when young, many are suitable for hedging. Dwarf cultivars are all good for bonsai work and shady rock gardens..
Grow in humus rich, moist but well drained, acidic to slightly alkaline soil in full sun or partial shade. They dislike urban environments or very exposed positions. Trim hedges from early to late summer.
Prone to gray mold (Botrytis), butt rot, rust, needle blights, snow blight, weevils, mites, aphids, and woolly adelgid.
T. sieboldii – Southern Japanese Hemlock – This often multi stemmed, broadly conical tree from Southern Japan grows 50-100′ feet tall and 25-35′ feet wide. It has smooth, dark pink-gray bark, later cracked. It produces linear, smooth edged needles, to 3/4″ long, with notched tips, glossy, dark green above and pale green to white beneath, are variable in arrangement. It bears shiny yellowish tan young ovoid female cones that are 1″ long that ripen to brown.
Zones 6-8
