Overwintering Cypress Evergreen in a pot?

[Gardener001]

Hi. Last winter, I received a cypress evergreen (Chamaecyparis Lawsoniana Ellwoodii) as a gift. I know that it would do better in the ground and not in a pot, but I currently don't have room, so it is doing just fine in a pot. The tag says that it can be kept indoors (I currently have it outdoors) but never mentions overwintering it. It isn't tolerant to temperatures below -20 degrees F, and I live in zone 6a, so it should be fine outside. I'm wondering how I can overwinter it. Do I just bury the pot in the ground to protect the roots from freezing? Is it possible I can just cheat and bring it inside? Will it do fine outside in the pot without being buried in the ground?

Thanks!

 

[Belmont]

On some googling, they are hardy to -20.2F. It should be fine for zone 6a. I can't give any advice on overwintering it, I don't have any experience with trees in pots. I can tell you that most Cypress really doesn't like being in a pot beyond its first year, the roots don't grow right.

 

[Robert Cummings]

Chamaecyparis lawsoniana ellwoodi is a bit slower growing than many coniferous trees therefore should be Ok in a pot for a couple of years until nearly pot bound in fact, to overwinter reduce watering to almost nothing and ensure the pot is not able to freeze solid, an occasional frost is ok but pre longed periods of hard frost solidifying the root ball will inevitably finish it off.

 

[Chuck]

If kept in a pot it MUST be moved indoors as long as it is cold enough to freeze the soil in the container. If the soil freezes the roots will freeze. By burying the container it "should" be OK, but the safest thing is to bring it inside during the cold periods.

 

[Gardener001]

Thank you all for your replies!

If kept in a pot it MUST be moved indoors as long as it is cold enough to freeze the soil in the container. If the soil freezes the roots will freeze. By burying the container it "should" be OK, but the safest thing is to bring it inside during the cold periods.

By bring it inside, should it go in a garage so it can go dormant, or is it alright if it doesn't go dormant and stays inside the house by a window where it won't be able to go dormant? Will it die without dormancy?

 

[Chuck]

Thank you all for your replies!



By bring it inside, should it go in a garage so it can go dormant, or is it alright if it doesn't go dormant and stays inside the house by a window where it won't be able to go dormant? Will it die without dormancy?

It won't die without dormancy but the tree really prefers to be outdoors.
Dormancy is a slowing down or stopping of a plants growth. In your case the tree, if left indoors, will still go dormant but not as "deeply" as if left outside. Your tree will be better off if you leave it outdoors except during periods of extreme cold or prolonged freezing weather.

 

[Amos J]

How do you know if your Chamaecyparis lawsoniana ellwoodii is dead or dormant. Mine is very small, got it before christmas and it's been indoors. It was exposed to an open window with negative tempatures and it has turned brown and the limbs have spread. I don't want to give up on it, if there's a chance...

 

[Marck]

Greetings, welcome ot the Forums.

Columnar Lawson Cypress (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Ellwoodii') is an evergreen conifer in the Cypress family (Cupressaceae).
If it is entirely brown, it is dead, or very close to being so.
They don't do well as indoor plants. They want full sun, cool humidity, and daily and seasonal change in temperature.

 

[Amos J]

Thanks. I'll put is outside, just in case. We get very cold winter's here. Zone 4. So I didn't want to put it out. But it's March. Might get lucky... sigh...