Content Detail

Its pyramidal habit, loose open branching and scale-like, dark green foliage make the sawara-cypress a notable option for specimen plantings or in groups in a large landscape. Besides its remarkable foliage, this evergreen has handsome reddish-brown bark that peels off in strips and tiny, reddish-brown cones on short stalks.

  • Family (English) Cypress
  • Family (botanic) Cupressaceae
  • Tree or plant type Tree, Shrub
  • Foliage Evergreen (foliage year-round)
  • Native locale Non-native
  • Size range Low-growing shrub (under 3 feet), Large shrub (more than 8 feet), Compact tree (10-15 feet), Small tree (15-25 feet), Medium tree (25-40 feet), Large tree (more than 40 feet)
  • Light exposure Full sun (6 hrs direct light daily)
  • Hardiness zones Zone 4, Zone 5 (Northern Illinois), Zone 6 (City of Chicago), Zone 7, Zone 8
  • Soil preference Acid soil, Moist, well-drained soil
  • Drought tolerance Tolerant
  • Season of interest early winter, midwinter, late winter, early spring, mid spring, late spring, early summer, midsummer, late summer, early fall, mid fall, late fall
  • Flower color and fragrance Inconspicuous
  • Shape or form Narrow, Pyramidal, Round
  • Growth rate Moderate

More Information

Size and Form

Sawara-cypress grows 50 to 60 feet high and 10 to 20 feet wide with a pyramidal form. Cultivars vary in size, color, and form.

Native Geographic Location and Habitat

Native to Japan.

Bark Description

Handsome, reddish-brown bark peels off into thin strips.

Leaf Description

Alternate, flattened, scale-like needles grow on horizontal branchlets.

Flower Description

Flowers are inconspicuous.

Fruit Description

Tiny, 5/16 inch reddish-brown cones appear on short stalks.

Care Knowledge

Plant Care

Best grown in full sun to part shade in average, moist, fertile soils. Avoid wet, poorly drained soil. Site out of direct wind. Prefers a humid climate. This plant rarely needs pruning

Pests, Diseases, and Tolerances: 

No serious pests or diseases. Sawara-cypress does not tolerate high pH.

Cultivars

Many of these cultivars are smaller, dwarf forms.

Boulevard Sawara-cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Boulevard’)

Growing 12 to 15 feet high and 8 to 10 feet wide, this narrow dwarf form has silver-blue foliage.

Cream Ball Sawara-cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Cream Ball’)

Only 2 to 3 feet high and wide, this rounded, compact, evergreen shrub has dense, soft, light green foliage that occurs as flattened sprays tipped in creamy white.

Soft Serve® Sawara-cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Don Whiting’)

A narrow, columnar, upright habit reaching 10 feet high and 6 feet wide, this graceful cultivar boasts needles that are green with steel blue undersides.

Golden Mop Sawara-cypress  (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Golden Mop’)

This cultivar is slow growing and only 2 to 3 feet high and wide at maturity. It is a low, mounded evergreen shrub with dense, soft, yellow scale-like foliage in thread-like sprays.

Golden Thread-leaved Sawara-cypress  (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Filifera Aurea’)

This densely mounded, golden yellow, and finely textured cultivar grows 15 to 20 feet high and 8 to 12 feet wide.

Plume Sawara-cypress  (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Plumosa’)

At 30 to 50 feet high and 10 to 20 feet wide, this pyramidal plant has a soft, airy texture.

Thread-leaved Sarawa-cypress  (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Filifera’)

An upright to mounded form growing 8 to 15 feet high and 8 to 12 feet wide, this cultivar has narrow, pendulous, threadlike foliage.

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