Worth knowing:
The Coastal Redwood can grow with up to 110 meters distinctly taller than its relative the Giant Redwood, while its trunk circumference is with up to seven meters much more slender than the Giant Redwood’s massive trunk with up to 17 meters. With its auburn heartwood it also belongs to the Redwood Trees that are found in the largest number in the Redwood National Park in the US state of California. The evergreen tree grows a slender pyramidal crown with bright green needles on top of a broadly branch-free trunk. Interesting is the fact that the Coastal Redwood produces two different types of needles. There are 10 to 20 mm long needles with a dark-green upper side and a grey-green coloured bottom that mostly appear at the shaded sprouts - and secondly, there are shorter, only six mm long so-called scale-leaves that are commonly situated on the upper parts of the treetop, closer to the sun. The red-brown coloured, fibrous bark of the tree develops already in an early growing state and exhales a resinous scent.
Natural Location:
Like its name already suggests, the Coastal Redwood grows naturally in the coastal areas of northern California and in the US state of Oregon.
Cultivation:
Coastal Redwood trees can be multiplied through cuttings, which is basically done in the forestry. Seed propagation indoors is also possible throughout the year. It is advisable to stratify the seeds first, which means to stimulate and prepare the seed with a cold treatment. For that you have to keep it sealed in a plastic bag in the regular refrigerator for about one week. After that, place the seeds for another day in warm water for priming, so that the swelling further increases its germinability. Now you can gently press the seeds into moist potting compost. As a light germinator the Coastal Redwood seeds need only a very thin layer of compost earth on top. Cover the seed container with clear film to prevent the earth from drying out, but don’t forget to make some holes in the clear film and take it every second or third day completely off for about 2 hours. That way you avoid mold formation on your potting compost. Place the seed container somewhere bright and warm with a temperature between 15°C and 20° Celsius and keep the earth moist, but not wet. You may need a little bit of patience with the germination, but within two to six weeks the first seedlings will come up.
Place:
Be aware that the Coastal Redwood will become a very tall tree, so choose wisely a full sunny spot for planting outdoors, preferably with a good soil drainage. The tree is a shallow-rooted plant and doesn’t tolerate longer dry periods. On the other hand, the Coastal Redwood can manage heavy and long-time damp soils without a problem since it is accustomed to flooding in the delta regions near the coast.
Care:
See that your Coastal Redwood gets sufficient water during the dry summer. That is also to say for older trees since it is not very deep rooted. Once a week, younger plants can also be dipped in a bigger container with water until the clotted roots are soaked. Fertilizing is usually not necessary.
During the winter:
Only after the trunk is lignified at its lower end up to 10 or 15 cm, it is sufficiently frost-resistant to be planted outdoors. For the first three years, the Coastal Redwood should therefore be kept in a tub and has to be watered moderate during winter. Ideally you keep it away from the dry air of a heater to prevent pest infestation. For its first winter outdoors, the tree should be given some protection for the root area, for example a layer of brushwood. Even then, the Coastal Redwood will only be partly frost-resistant, and it usually cannot cope with longer frost periods with temperatures below -10° to -15° Celsius. The leaves will be affected first and then it will take damage to the whole tree.
Picture credits:
- © © Allie Caulfield - CC-BY-SA-2.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Allie_Caulfield - CC-BY-2.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0
- © Allie_Caulfield - CC-BY-2.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0
- © Crusier - CC-BY-SA-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0
- © Ilya Katsnelson - CC-BY-2.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0
- © Jan Kronsell - Public domain - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/publicdomain/
- © Allie Caulfield - CC-BY-SA-2.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0
