Lots of perpetual trimming. The price is a clue.

Cross it off your list.

Pinus nigra is extremely susceptible to diplodia tip blight. Many nurseries around here aren't growing/selling them anymore.

Move on to the next idea.

Dan

Yep, it will need to be pruned. Pines push new growth once a year, in the late spring, and that's the best time to do the trimming. So you would need to do the deed once a year.

The picture you show is not the natural appearance. The natural appearance is just like a regular old pine tree.

The hardiness would be the same as a regular Austrian pine.

If Pinus nigra does not do well in your area due to pests or disease, you could do the same thing with another pine that does do well. If you're determined to give it a go, I recommend a book called Niwaki. It gives lots of details about sculpting pines.

you might be laughed off the conifer forum for considering this conifer .. lol ... hint.. hint ...

if you have a gardener.. who knows what he is doing ... then spending that kind of money for that kind of headache might be worthwhile ... but not in my world ...

otherwise.. i agree on skipping the proverbial.. foo foo plant ...

ken

OK, crossing it off!

Any other evergreens that have an "exotic" look that I should consider?

That depends on where your zone 7 is and what soil & sun conditions you have.

tj

Soil, not sure. I only know that my Emerald Green Arbovitae are doing excellently.

This tree would be in a full sun area.

I'm on the Connecticut coast.

Might be able to get away with Pinus thunbergii 'Thunderhead'. Sculptural without fussing over it.

tj

Here is a link that might be useful: No pruning required

Link does not seem to work?

That's a nice looking tree. My worry is size. I don't have a huge yard for it. That looks like a very big tree?

Its smaller than the Sculptured Austrian Pine you were looking at.

tj

I'd need to be able to contain it. I don't have a huge front yard and I have power lines about 30' up. And it couldn't get much more than 20-30' wide or it would look too big for the yard.

Any thoughts on size? I do like that tree a lot.

Maybe 10 x 10 in 20 years.

tj

Here is a link that might be useful: Rollin' like thunder

Too late to consume a plant product from HD now. Too hammered.

Dan