Do you mean like a bonsai? Maybe check that forum out. I've never thought of growing a christmas tree in a container before! Interesting idea though :)

I was going to do that at one point. I wanted two, one for each outside corner of my deck. You will need to get a evergreen that is slow growing and cold hardy to zone 2. If it's very cold hardy, you could probably get away with not wrapping it in winter. I was growing a white pine, that I got from the cities tree for a tree program, in a pot, and it tolerated all sorts of abuse and neglect. Eventually, I got tired of it because white pine isn't the best subject for pot culture because it is too open.

Every 2-3 years you need to take it out of the pot, prune the roots and replace the soil. Depending on how big you want it to be, this can be somewhat challenging.

There are a lot of nice mini everygreens that would be easier to manage, but you will still need to root prune and replace soil at some point.

I have supplied a link to a site that sells dwarf conifers. Maybe you can find something there that interests you. Also, have you been reading over at the conifer forum? Those people seem to really know their stuff and are dedicated to species.

Here is a link that might be useful: Small conifers

Sigh... I wish there was an editing feature for those times I don't edit.

Mommie rose, janetpetiole gave some good advice. Also be aware, if you plan to bring it in the house for Christmas, you'd need to slowly acclimate it to warm conditions by putting it in a garage for a week before, keep it in the house for only a week maybe ten days at the absolute most and then back to the garage for a week before going outside. Some of the hardier pines (zone 3 or colder) that are pretty readily available are white (pinus strobus), scots (pinus sylverstis) and korean (pinus koreansis).

tj

Thank you guys for all the advice. I'll be undertaking my quest soon.

My vote is for Dwarf Alberta Spruce....very common and available everywhere. Grows maybe 1/2 inch per year and stays very compact and dense.

Dave
Franklin.

I just put some Dwarf Alberta Spruce in containers, looks great...