How to Grow Blue Atlas Cedar Trees in Full Sun or Shade
The blue Atlas cedar, a tree native to the Atlas Mountains of Algeria and Morocco, has an outstanding ornamental quality in its silvery blue foliage. It grows well in full sun or partial shade and is a common landscaping tree in the southern and western parts of the U.S. Don't let the blue Atlas cedar's stark appearance as a young tree fool you -- it grows into a stunning tree with broad horizontal branches. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Choose a healthy, vigorous blue Atlas cedar for spring planting.
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Find a well-drained location for your blue Atlas cedar. You can test whether a particular location is suitable by digging an 18-inch hole and filling it with water. Check back in two hours. If the hole is empty, you have a well-drained location where your tree can thrive.
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Take into account other important factors when selecting a location. This tree prefers moist soil that is slightly acidic but can tolerate alkaline soil too. The blue Atlas cedar can grow in clay, loam or sand. Give it plenty of room to grow since it could reach 60 feet high and 35 feet across.
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Dig a hole for the tree that is two to three times the size of its root ball. Center the tree in the hole and fill in with soil. Cover a3-foot area around the tree with 2 to 4 inches of mulch, but keep the mulch from touching the bark of the tree.
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Water the tree regularly during its first growing season. Once established, the tree is relatively drought tolerant and will not require watering.
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Avoid pruning the blue Atlas cedar during the first growing season. Once a young tree is established, however, you may need to prune it to keep the heavy lateral branches from breaking off under their own weight. To keep the beautiful form of this cedar, leave the central leader intact when pruning.
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Tips & Warnings
The blue Atlas cedar is a low maintenance tree. The U.S. Forest Service states it is drought tolerant, generally resistant to disease and free of insect pest problems.
