This time of year, in Fall, Rolling Green Nursery often hears concerns from customers that their newly planted Chamaecyparis (false cypress) trees or shrubs are dying. The interior of the plants can turn orange or brown giving the appearance that the plant is in decline.
The good news is that there is no need to panic, this is a natural process of plant senesence that can occur in both the springtime and in the fall in certain conifers.
Chamaecyparis (Hinoki cypress) and some other evergreens like Thuja (arborvitae), some pine and spruce, often shed some of their needles to prepare for new growth when the weather warms again in the spring. There may be just a small amount of shedding, or there may be a lagrer amount as some evergreens can go through a major shedding process every three to five years. Most often the browning occurs in the interior, and not on the tips, since that is where the older foliage is located.
Shedding can be a good thing for the tree or shrub in the winter because there will be fewer needles to hold exta snow or ice that may make them more prone to damage.
It is often concerning to homeowners who understand the term ‘evergreen’ to mean that the plant will never go through a dormant stage like a deciduous tree or shrub, but in order to replace older leaves or needles with new ones, the old ones need to be eliminated by the tree or shrub. The actual amount of needle shed on the conifer will vary depending on the type of growing season, including temperature and rainfall, and can sometimes be shockingly sudden.
Some gardeners don’t like the browning look and consider trimming our the dead portions. Pruning is not necessarily advised because you may accidentally prune something that is not replaceable. A mistaken pruning that cuts off an old branch where it will not generate any new growth could leave you with a permanent hole in your tree. If your tree is small enough, once the needles have become totally brown and brittle, you can gently shake your tree to help elimiate much of the brown portion.
If whole sections of your conifer seem to be turning brown, you should look closely at the branches and needles to determine if there is damage, decay or an insect issue, which would possibly require some type of treatment or action. If you are uncertain about the cause of the problem, it is advised to have it checked out by a certified arborist or landscape professional, or feel free to bring a photo into Rolling Green Nursery.
linda troakel
/ 14 Oct 2019hello.my chameacyparis tree has a few drooping branches some showing a lot of brown.can we trim them ? the tree is 21 years old.thankyou
rgnursery
/ 15 Oct 2019Hi Linda. Yes – you are doing the plant good by pruning it. Look for any dead branches covered in brown needles. Cut off the dead branches that are visible on the outside of the tree, and gently move the other branches to look for dead branches hidden inside the tree. Prune these branches back to the trunk of the tree. Cut the branches off cleanly at a 90-degree angle with the trunk. Avoid tearing or breaking the branches, as this can lead to decay and disease that can harm the rest of the tree. This kind of cypress can be pruned anytime from spring to summer. Never remove more than a third of the branches or the stress of the pruning could kill the cypress. That should encourage new, fresh growth and keep the plant healthy and looking its best.
MAYURA J KUMAR
/ 14 Oct 2020Hi! Thanks for this article –
Made me feel better. My new soft serve false cypress (planted in June) looked great all summer and has started to brown and orange/yellow. I’m worried it’s dying! Do I leave it alone?
rgnursery
/ 15 Oct 2020Hello there! Please give us a call and we can talk you through proper care. Evergreens do often shed foliage as a healthy part of their growing process and response to seasons, however, we want to make sure there’s nothing more going on. If you call us, ask for Steve or Beth and tell them what’s you’re seeing, and they can help you from there. If possible – be ready to send them a photo too – so they can see the symptoms.
Sherry Styer
/ 01 May 2020My beautiful fernspray hinoki lead top broke off. About 10-12 inch long. Now it has a stubble top. Will it grow the feathery fern like growth again?
Fred
/ 27 Sep 2020My newly planted soft serve cypress are all turning yellow beginning from the inside. Fred
rgnursery
/ 29 Sep 2020This is actually normal leaf drop. They will have yellow centers and leaf drop every few 2-3 years, and they are just shedding old foliage for new. They will bush out again in their centers, and return to normal fresh growth. So – nothing is wrong with the tree – no disease – it is normal growing behavior.
Tarek Mahjoub
/ 18 Nov 2020Hi, my Chamaecyparis is tiny, about 20 cm tall. It was soft and supple at first but now it’s quite dry and the needles fall off easily. However it is still very green. I’m very confused, should I be concerned?
rgnursery
/ 18 Nov 2020Hi Tarek. It sounds like normal needle shedding. How long has it been this way? Are you experiencing any drought? Are you in a zone heading into winter?
Petra
/ 11 Jan 2021Hi there i am looking for advise please. I bought in September very cute little tree soft to touch, the chamaecyparis laws ellwoods gold. It was nice and green in his pot. I put it in it’s pot in between my rockie garden as it says it likes full sun. But sadly most branches got brown and dry. I repoted it but nothing has changed. I wrapped it around the cloth and put ot with the pot into the digged hole in my garden to protect it from freeze. Is stil there but branches most of it stil brown..
I wonder if i should prune it or how it would recover. I can send some additional pictures if you like. Please give me advice if you can.
Many thanks,
rgnursery
/ 11 Jan 2021Hi Petra! Please send a few photos in to marketing@rollinggreennursery.com so we can be better able to help you problem solve. It sounds like the plant is responding to cold weather – and not necessarily sick or dying. They will often brown up and drop some foliage in winter, and then bush up again during the growing season. Putting a plant in a pot is harder on the plant because its roots are held above ground, root bound when they may want to expand their root systems, and exposed to freezing temperatures – this can all be problematic. You are right to try and shield it from cold winds, and find a warm and sunny spot for it as much as possible. And wrapping its roots/pot helps, but can still be a bit precarious for the plant overall. It may be signaling that it’s unhappy, and wants to be planted in the ground once the ground has fully thawed in the spring. Some plants can tolerate pots better than others. Please send photos, and we can help you determine better.