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cvette

Canaan Fir or Canadian Hemlock?

cvette
10 years ago

Hi everyone,

I've been going back and forth on our selection for a tree in our front yard. The location gets about 5hrs of sun and is on a small berm so I expect it is well drained. Road salt is not an issue. The goal is a little privacy and winter color. The tree is from a local nursery and is 7-8'.

We have a ~30yr old Blue Spruce that is suffering from Canker and Needlecast so I've been trying to find a conifer that is less susceptable to these diseases. I've seen websites that list both the Canaan and the Hemlock as susceptable to these but I'm not clear on the probability. I've been told the Wooly Adelgid is controllable and not to let it sway my decision.

Also, could the Blue Spruce infect the new tree? It is about 60' feet away and is probably going to be taken down next year. Should I take it down before planting the new tree? If I replace the Blue Spruce with another conifer in the same spot next year, will the disease remain and infect the new tree?

Any comments or things to consider would really be helpful.
Thanks!

Comments (4)

  • gardener365
    10 years ago

    Get rid of the blue spruce and leave nothing of it on your immediate property. The disease is transmitted by spores into open wounds of surrounding conifers. So #1 get rid of the blue spruce and burn it if you can or have someone else burn it.

    Canaan. Why invest in a hemlock when wooly adelgid is present and when Canaan will be maintenance free? It doesn't make sense. Canaan is a great conifer. I happen to like them enough that I have 25 or so planted here.

    Get the blue spruce stump ground down and begin killing it and plant another tree when you are able to. Picea omorika is resistant to Cytospora canker and is a handsome tree.

    A quick reference link below, for you.

    Dax

    Here is a link that might be useful: Cytospora Canker of Spruce

  • lcadem
    10 years ago

    Interesting question. Does anyone have a picture of a mature Canaan fir? I can only find picture of Christmas tree sized specimens...

  • cvette
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thank you Dax.

    I prefer the Canaan but was considering the Hemlock if it was more shade tolerant (5hrs sun) or more disease (needlecast/canker) tolerant. Since I was told wooly adelgids were controllable, I thought I'd post to get some opinions.

    It sounds like I definitely will want to take down the infected spruce before planting the new tree. If I take down the spruce, any concern with planting a 2nd Canaan right where the spruce was? I'd have to pull the stump of the old spruce and make sure it was dead and no spores were left over.

  • cvette
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    The current plan is to place a shade tolerant conifer (Canaan Fir or Canadian Hemlock) in the 5hr sun location and a full sun conifer (Canaan Fir or Norway Spruce) where the infected Blue Spruce was.

    I've had two arborists visit and suggest a Norway Spruce over the Canaan Fir for the full sun spot and the Hemlock for the shade spot. One of them explained that the Norway and Hemlock remain full at maturity but the Canaan becomes much thinner 15-20 years out. Is this true with all firs or just the Canaan? I can't find any images of mature Canaan's as they are all Xmas tree farms.

    The current plan is a Canadian Hemlock and a Norway Spruce. Does anyone have any links, photos or details about mature Canaan Firs?