alygal,

Probably not the best choice. Best used use as a solitary accent in the yard or one to play off a larger screen for color display.

This conifer is not a candidate for topping at any height as it grows from a strong central leader. Destroy it and you destroy the plants ability to perform naturally Foliage tends to be a little open and airy also. The one in the photo is 10 years old and 15 ft. high and they keep on growing until death. 45 ft. is not uncommon.

Dave

{{gwi:800708}}

alygal,
I have no experience with Arizona Cypress as a hedge, but do have several trees growing. My impression of Blue Ice is that it has strong genetic tendency to be a single dominant-leader tree. In other words it will be the classic cone-shaped conifer, tall and not very wide. Have one growing and it is exactly that way. I have not touched it, so I cannot say how it would react to being pruned.

Also have two Carolina Sapphire (another Arizona Cypress cultivar) growing that I made the mistake of actually pruning due to a main leader leaning at an angle that alarmed me. I'm wondering if they will ever again establish a dominant leader. They are growing all over the place and have not yet re-established a central leader that I can tell after a year. This cultivar would be the better candidate for a hedge and would be what I would try if using Arizona Cypress for a hedge.

Arizona Cypress in the wild can grow to 60-90' in the mountains. Most specimens I have seen around here are between 35-55'. Have read that Blue Ice is projected to be a 30' tall tree, but never any back-up information as to why they predict it will not get taller than that.

Leyland cypress and western red cedar are also tall-growing trees with strong apical dominance. Most false cypresses, true cypresses, and arborvitaes are suitable for use as trimmed hedges as long as you start small and develop them into hedges as they grow. You do not want to let them get away from you and then saw back into old bare or lightly furnished growth, as this does not fill back in well.

Just wondering...if anyone here has ever espaliered this tree?

I found a photo of an espaliered one from another garden website but this website wouldn't allow me to post the link.

Found it on a different website.

Here is a link that might be useful:

That looks fantastic. A nice way to show the bark too.

Here's another.

Here is a link that might be useful: