In an effort to redeem myself, here are some of my winter favorites that I recognize are not everyone's cup of teaâ¦mostly Cryptomeria. First, 'Little Leo'

Sara

Hi Sara,

nice Crypto-collection. Interesting for me is your colour-change from Dacridioides and Black Dragon. They do not change here, they stay green like in summer.Normally here they change is deeper temps, but Little Leo here is not hardy enough in winter. Can you tell me something about your winter climate?
Thx
Wolfgang

Wolfgang - we're in USDA zone 9b but that doesn't tell you very much. Sunset zone 14 is more descriptive: influenced by marine air about 85% of the time, over a 20-yr period, lows ranged from 40F to 35F (4C to 2C) with record lows from 27F to 17F (-3C to -8C). Our air moves - almost always a light (or heavy!) breeze off the ocean, although we are 15 miles from the coast.
Right now we're experiencing a severe cold spell (for us) and the temperature at noon is 47F. Overnight we went down to the high 20s. 'Little Leo' may get a bit frost-burned. The last few years we've barely gone below the mid-30s.

Sara

Sara, is the color for Thuja occidentalis 'Wansdyke Silver' typically like that?

In winter only - it's a dull green in summer. It's a fun one!

Sara

Thanks didn't realized it colored up nicely in winter. Might have to pic one up.

Well if it colors here, it really ought to color where you are!

Thank you all for the beautiful pics!

Sara, I hope you're familiar with the fact that the 'Little Leo' isn't a Cryptomeria?
It looks like you're mentioning such thing...

This post was edited by coniferjoy on Sat, Dec 7, 13 at 4:43

Nice 'Skylands', Dave!
tj, your 'Green Arrow really looks at home in the snow.
I brought my 'Little Leo' inside to my usually unheated sunroom yesterday. Good thing, the temperature here at 1a.m is -11 C. or 13 F. My other Cunninghamias will have to tough it out as they are large and in the ground. It's getting too close to single digits F. for me.
My Cryptomeria japonica, 'Black Dragon' has stayed green over the last few years I've had it. We'll see what happens after this cold spell.
Mike

A baby 'Golden Spreader'. -2 degrees outside...but right outside the patio!

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Edwin my goof! I was quickly pulling photos together and correctly identified which individual it was and then got my C's mixed up. Of course it it a Cunninghamia. My other two Cunninghamia (different species) Havana also colored up nicely.

Thanks Sara,
for your info. Here it is much colder, but we are ( similar like you) only 10 miles from salt water ( here the Baltic Sea.).
At zone 9 you have not so deep temps like here, maybe the changeing of your cultivars have genetic source or maybe it 's the soil.??

Wolfgang

NICE contrast Whaas. I dig the mix of plants there.

Dave, that first photo is amazing!

Will, I also really like the sight of Abies nordmanniana 'Golden Spreader'. Here's a view from my small plant from above.

I'll also suggest Pinus mugo 'Carstens'.

I always like the sight of pine branches and cones against a stark winter sky.

Alex

This post was edited by maple_grove on Sun, Dec 8, 13 at 14:37

Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Butter Ball'. Small, but I walk right past it every morning and it is nice and bright

This post was edited by SC77 on Sat, Dec 7, 13 at 14:33

Wow, some great stuff here! I like the Green Arrow.

Pinus mugo 'Golden Glow'

Wolfgang our native soil is adobe clay - I tend to plant up on mounds with amended soil mixed with lava rock pebbles.

Those photos, by the way, were taken in February. Not all have colored as of yet this season.

Sara

Thanks Sara,

maybe it's like other trees ( like p.e. Parrotia ). some shows a good change or autumn colour/winter colour, some stay green?? Let us watch every winter. Elegans always changes.

Wolfgang

A few more...

Thuja occidentalis 'Rheingold' (less orange this year so far)
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Thuja occidentalis 'Congabe'
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Pinus mugo 'Carstens'
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OMG that 'Congabe'!!!!!!

Snowed here today. Adds a new element and created some new winter time favorites:

Picea glauca 'Laurin'
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Pinus parviflora species tree
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This post was edited by maple_grove on Sun, Dec 8, 13 at 15:55

maple grove

Any idea what your showing us?

Dave

Just edited the above to provide that information, Dave.

Sara, yeah I really like that one. It seemed overused at one point but now I rarely hear about it. It looks more red in person. Damn rabbits ate it back on the right side, didn't seem to rebound all that well this year.

Alex, thats a real nice parv!

Nice thread and pics.

My darling from Hungary
Platycladus orientalis Lakatos.
She got a light creamy purple clothes for winter.

Zsolt

She's beautiful.

Do you know anybody, who is fool enough to plant a winter conifer garden on 2 acres?
In the last years I documented a lot of wintergold type conifers - included lime-bronze-yellow colors. They are much more as ever exepted. We have to wait only December and sitting in the middle of a golden garden till spring.
Zsolt

For me, it would have to be Cryptomeria japonica 'Sekkan'

I saw a little 'Sekkan' for sale recently and it made me think of yours Josh.

It looks happy and motoring, great colour.

The obvious choice but still it's far and away the brightest of my golds so far. The understock is Pinus Sylvestris which may be ok in the UK, has to be seen. Left on as recommended to support the plant.

Pinus contorta var.latifolia 'Chief Joseph'

Lots of colorful conifers posted. Wates Golden VA pine is a happy yellow in the grayest of winters & dark green Table mnt pine makes a nice background & contrast for it.

Was having a hard time choosing this, but thought that I would choose something a bit different. My monkey puzzle tree covered in snow....

Thanks, Severn!
Your Chief is lookin' right fine!

Josh

Oh that monkey puzzleâ¦what a great shot! Talk about structureâ¦.

Sara

Sciadopitys verticillata 'Star Wars'

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I wish the Internet was up and running when I started buying plants. There's some real beauties shown above. Picea orientalis, 'Skylands' and Pinus contorta, var., 'Chief Joseph' would have been some of my first acquisitions.
Here's Picea abies, 'nidiformis' in my garden. My neighbor gave it to me after his horse stepped on it. The plant was no bigger than a basketball.
Mike

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:607511}}

Yes Mike, I agree! Nice shots above, all who posted. This was fun, DAve, thank you.

Sara

Thanks everybody for participating. 50 + posts is a good run and not to late to add yours. I could do 3-4 more some of my favorite things and I can if the interest is out there.

One more from me that ranks right up there because its growing habit. I call it the 'Veiled One'.aka Chamaecyparis nookatensis 'Green Arrow'. The name stays here in my garden so don't get excited Edwin.

I have not seen another one yet with this much hang down foliage. If you have a comparison please post it.

Dave

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A photo from three years ago for comparison.
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My Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Avenue' in December.

Some years ago I recognized, that the known "wintergold" type colouring is not only valid for some pines. Many other conifers are changing their colours in wintertime.

Lets see some of them!

Cupressocyparis leylandii x MPH Aranka
Goldie sports on a tree, usually in the upper parts.

Cupressocyparis leylandii x MPH Kremes
The photo is very bad, but its bright yellow is obviously in January... Its a yellow sport, meanwhile the plant is medium lime or freshgreen.

Cupressocyparis leylandii x MPH Boglar
Full of wintergold sports, usually freshgreen.

Cupressocyparis lexlandii x MPH Dobogo
Part of a hedge with coloured sports.

Cupressocyparis leylandii x MPH Matyas Kiraly
Looks the best of all, its also a hedge.

Finally a Christmas wintergold surprise. Some years ago I found a goldie sport on a Cedrus libani in December. It seems to be instabile, all grafts are blue... :( Cedrus libani MPH Szent Erzsebet

A near shot

Some years ago I found goldie sports on my Abies cilicica,
The grafts show a certain lime colour phase, surely not green.
Abies cilicica MPH Aranyag

Generally I think now, that the colour of conifers is greatly chemistry. Soil, sunshine, temperature and so on. The leylands above are not the same in all winters. They may get nice colours in certain circumstances, but they are able to show what if time comes.

Zsolt
conifertreasury.org

Pinus sylvestris 'Wolting's Gold'

Very nice! Please try to make an other photo in mid January.
Zsolt

Garcan, may I please use your 'Wolting's Gold' pic for the Dutch Conifer Society database?
Thanks in advance!

How old is this specimen?

I never saw one in this size, it's a very nice compact grower!
I always had in mind that it was just onather yellow one with the same growing habit like the 'Aurea'...

Edwin, sure. If you want I can send you a higher resolution copy. The one posted is only 700 pixels wide. I acquired it in 2008 as a 3 gal stock. So my guess is it could be about 8-10 years old. It's probably about 160 cm high now. It is indeed very naturally compact without any shearing.

I would be very pleased if you will send me a higher resolution copy of it.

Thanks again!

Thought I would add my Chief to the list,

And here's my "carstens" in a pot.

My 'Carstens' about halfway gold. Catching the evening sun.

And this is 2 years ole graft of picea abies Kihniö Gold, unlike Ylivieska Gold it is yellow at all times. You can easily see understock from grafted part.