Keep the planting mulched and, as needed, watered and wait for it to sort itself out on its own. Remove staking after one year. Expect significantly larger specimens than you have now, cultivar is not dwarf, species produces a giant tree on suitable sites.

I'm curious, do you mind telling me what nursery you purchased this from? Was it Homestead Gardens? IIRC they used to heavily promote 'Kashmir' - at last I think it was that one.

Just by looking, but can't be 100% sure, it appears this plant has been grown to close to another for some time. I base this on weak growth on the side you have concerns with.

If tied up, or bound, for shipment all sides would bare this look and without a doubt some branches would be broken.

A full photo of this tree would help. If planted for me, as I see it, I would have it yanked and replace with a balanced specimen.

Dave

i too wondered if it was line grown in a field ... spaced perfectly when they were a foot tall .. and not sold until they were jamming each other together ...

lets face it.. its fall ... its cold out there.. it should return to its more normal shape.. next spring when things warm up ... of course.. we dont know what 'normal' is for this tree ...

oh.. welcome ...

i also suggest a pic of the whole ... wondering about value for what you paid ??? if you paid $250 for a tree that size.. installed.. its not all that bad.. if you paid $1000 ... i am with dave on the quality issue ... [and that is hard since we really dont know your market forces]

in a few years.. when this thing is twice as big in every dimension.. this will not be an issue.. on some level.. its your expectations that might be a bit high.. instant gratification is hard.. with trees that have a life span of 50 to 100 years ... and its usually not the trees fault.. it more that you want it perfect yesterday.. even though you moved it 20 miles down the road from a nursery ... who shipped it in a couple hundred miles from where it was grown ...

the first year or two.. all i want.. all i expect is .. for it to live ... EVERYTHING.. i mean everything else.. can be fixed later.. if it in fact ends up being a problem ...

cant tell from your picture.. but can you tell if its telephone poled.. you should be able to see the root flare at the base of the trunk .... pull back the mulch and find out ... and give us a pic.. if you cant tell ...

good luck

ken

My answer from another thread with a similar question.......

I have seen curled branches many times on deodaras when they come out of the nurseries. A lot of times it was because they were grown in a confined space so the branches curl around the tree. If this is the case the branches may or may not return to their full outward hang depending on how long it has been confined and how thick the branch has become.
What I have done in a few of these cases is similar to what guys do when they are working on a bonsai tree.....I get heavy guage wire from Home Depot and cut it in pieces about 1 1/2 times the length of the branch. Then I wrap it loosley around the branch starting from the inside near the trunk and working outward. When you get out to any where near the end of the branch snip the remaining wire off. Now you can bend the branch into whatever shape you like and the heavy guage copper will be stiff enough wrapped around the branch, to hold it in the shape you bend it.

You may have to leave it for a year or two to re-train it and make sure it will hold that new form, but it's worth it. And you cannot do this on mature thick branches.....only younger ones say smaller than an inch caliper. The thicker and older they are the greater the chance you will split the branch.

mark

Hello Bboy, David, Dave, Ken and Mark. Thank you so very much for your valuable input. Since having the tree planted I've been thinking that its branches were bent because they were bound for shipment or that it was bound for a long time. One more piece of the puzzle is that I actually had two of these trees installed and the other tree, which was also bound, looks very good. At first I thought that the differences was the age of the tree as the second tree is younger (1.5 ft smaller) so I thought it was more limber.

However, your suggestions, that the tree in question was flanked on one or two sides by some sort of barrier(s) that diverted the branches from their natural course, makes the most sense.

Regardless of whether the tree goes back to its original shape now is a bit irrelevant because now the question is centered on the quality of the product that was delivered. I will now have this discussion with the nursery and the installer. Thank you once again for your responses. From now on I will visiting this forum first with any of my questions regarding conifers in landscaping.

Best,

Giulio

Since dcsteg said I never get my thoughts completed in one post, I'm bumping this thread for the sake of consistency.

i.e. "davidrt28 who can never get all he wants to say in one post and has to come back time after time to finish. Applies to every thread he's been involved in."

I do wonder where the original poster got the plant in the DC area, because I want one.

Hello David,

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. I live in Maryland and the tree was purchased from Shemin Nursery. They are in Burtonsville MD but I believe they are a national grower. Sorry once again fro the delay.

davidrt28. Glad you didn't disappoint me. LOL. Post all you want too. Just having fun.

Just so you and gpaciotti know. This grows into a big tree. Plant accordingly.

They are best located as a lawn specimen away from walks, streets, and sidewalks so branches will not have to be pruned. Large specimens have trunks almost three feet in diameter.

This cultivar is a rapid grower to 40 to 50 feet tall and 20 to 30 feet wide. It also works well as a soft screen.

Dave