Pictures of Conifer Bronzing During January 2004 Deep Freeze

Pictures by Greyneedle.

(Information Provided is for Recreational Purposes Only--No Liability Assumed) 

There are three Redwood species:
Coast Redwood (of Redwood Forest fame and lumber):  Sequoia sempervirens
Dawn Redwood (Chinese native, deciduous and similar to Bald Cypress in appearance):   Metasequoia glyptostroboides
Giant Redwood/Giant Sequoia (Big Trees of the Sierra Nevada interior, Yosemite and Sequoia Natl Park):  Sequoiadendron giganteum

In the NYC/Philly Area, Metasequoia grows easily, Sequoiadendron grows grudgingly and S. sempervirens generally
will not survive our winters. S.s. is seen growing in coastal Maryland, Virginia and DE (borderline zone 8 areas).

There are some tricks to growing Sequoiadendron in the area, so this site is dedicated to those interested.

Don't confuse winter color with diseases. Conifers rarely contract diseases during the winter:

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January 2004 was the coldest in 25 years (excluding the first week), with lows well into zone 6. This Giant Sequoia seedling had no special protection from the cold (no mulch, no snow, no chemical protection). In Dec 2003, which was fairly warm, the conifer turned an interesting deep blue/green color, which is only visible in direct sunlight. Very nice color, though see below for cloudy day color. It had turned a similar color last year, though not this intense. (Color seems to fade with time unless conditions vary a lot from year to year.)

 

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Here is the same tree a few days later in cloudy weather. The color looks more like a brownish-green, with a distinct browning of the needles on top (sunward) and normal color underneath. This could be frost damage or bronzing. The inner and older foliage is more brown than newer foliage and the tips are brown. This might be a left over fungal infection and suggests that spraying early in the spring will be needed.

 

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Here is the top of the same tree again in the sun. Notice the blue on the inner stem.

 

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Here is the top of the same tree in cloudy weather. The blue of the inner stem remains while the needles look more brown/green. Some needles look frost damaged (near the bottom of the photo). Frost damage generally shows up on new growth near the tips.

 

Here is a close-up of a lower branch in the sun. Sm
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Here is a photo of a branch from another tree in the sun. You can see the whitish coloring on the branch clearly. Sm
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Here are the lower branches on a cloudy day. You can see the browning of the needles clearly.

 

The top of another tree in the sun. This tree was sprayed with the chemical protectant "Wiltpruf" as an experiment. It makes the needles very shiny. One can see the brown/green and blue all together. No indication if the chemical is protecting the tree yet. Wiltpruf is not recommended here for live trees but may work well with cut X-Mas trees.

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Bronzing occurs on many species and sometimes looks good and sometimes does not:

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Here is a picture of a bronzed Juniperus virginiana 'Blue Mountain' on a cloudy day. This tree does not normally get particularly bronzed during the winter, so the wet weather in 2003 might be a factor. The tree also has some disease issues and is in shade during the summer. It has survived, however, for over 35 years. Normal color is blue/green.

 

Here is a bronzed J. vir. at Reeves-Reed Arboretum in Summit, NJ after a large snow storm in January (which came after a deep freeze). This photo is in full sun.

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Here is a collection of wild J. vir. in a field. They were not planted but established themselves naturally when the lot was vacated. They are not near a road, and the soil is fairly wet all year here. They are all bronzed to varying degrees. A very large sycamore stands in the background, one of the largest trees in the area. Photo taken in very bright sun.

 

Here is a photo of one of the trees in the field. It is very bronzed. You can see the red/orange coloring on the branches. This is not a sign of disease.

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Here is a picture of Sciadopitys verticillata in full sun at the Reeves-Reed Arboretum. It has slight bronzing. Other cultivars of this species might have a more dramatic winter color. Many prefer the cultivar 'Wintergreen' for its retention of summer color. (For some reason this tree was later removed. They can be hard to establish.)

 

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Here is a close-up of the needles on the S. vert. They are slightly bronzed.

 

Here is a photo of a dwarf T. occ. cultivar. It gets slightly bronzed in winter--less so than the species. Photo taken on a cloudy day. This dwarf gets summer sun until about 2pm and winter sun until about noon.

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For our most dramatic look at bronzing, here is a large Cryptomeria japonica along a major road. The tree is much more bronzed on its sunward side (shown here). The foliage is not dead, just very brown/rusty. Photo taken in full sun. Compare to the colors of the little blue spruce in front and the large spruce behind. This photo was taken in January, by the end of April the tree was entirely green again. (This tree was cut down later the following summer.)

Bronzing photos from later in the season:

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Here is a seedling in March 2004, showing late winter color, which is less blue and more yellow than early winter color. Trees in shade all winter will not bronze and will retain their green color until late season. This seems to help with summer growth. Low growing trees to the south can shade the tree in the winter while not shade them in the summer when the sun is higher.

 

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A close-up of the foliage above, still showing some signs of blue, or rather, lack of green.

 

Here is the same seedling at the very end of April 2004, just before new growth was developing, showing re-greening of foliage. Photo taken early in morning. Regreening happens inside out and bottom to top over about two weeks. Winter root damage will result in a dead branch or two with orange/red color. Sm
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Further Links:
Exotic Tree Home Page
Giant Sequoia Growing in NJ, NY and PA
More GS Photos in NYC/Philly Area
Photos of Area GS from Middle 2004
Photos of Area GS from Late 2004
Photos of GS Diseases
More Photos of GS Diseases
Conifer Winter Bronzing Photos
GS Photos from Other Photographers
Some Other Exotic Tree Species
Bald Cypress and Dawn Redwood Bark Photos

Germination Trials for growing by seed:
Summary of Tips for Growing GS from Seeds
Environmental Considerations
Germination Trials I
Germination Trials II
Germination Trials III
Germination Trials IV